Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I would not expect the Minister to be aware of the location and the specifics of the scheme concerned but the Clarke’s Hill road improvement scheme was partially completed, which included a longer stretch of road around Garryduff, Moneygourney, Rochestown and Douglas. Clarke’s Hill itself was not completed and is the final remaining section of that road improvement scheme. I accept that the local authority must supplement its own internal funding with funding from the Department but the question is whether there will be a specific improvement scheme going forward.

The Minister said the Department was not operating an annual grant scheme. Are allocations therefore made on an ad hocand case-by-case basis? The infrastructure fund to which the Minister referred is not relevant in this case: this is not about opening up development land. The roads are already serving densely populated residential areas in Rochestown and the road infrastructure on the two roads to which I refer is woefully inadequate. Perhaps the Minister could give an indication of how the Department expects councils to complete schemes such as the one to which I refer if there is not an annual application process under what was regarded as the specific road improvement scheme.

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