Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her response. Ballitore is a very good example of a rural village that will benefit greatly from the REDZ scheme funding. The Tanyard has the potential to become a social and economic hub of activity for Ballitore and its rural hinterland hopefully bringing employment opportunities in tourism, crafts and retail. I will invite the Minister to come down and visit the site at some stage and hopefully meet with the committee because the Tanyard is situated in the heart of the village. It is a spot that in most villages is occupied by a local church or school. There are neither of these in Ballitore and it has suffered because of that. Ballitore is a village that used to be thriving with a lot of businesses in it but it has seen decline in recent years and some challenging demographics. It is a key area that needed this type of intervention. The Ballitore Tanyard committee has retained strong links with other community groups in the locality so this project now has the potential to revitalise an entire village. I ask the Minister to provide a bit of detail about the drawdown and how a committee like the Tanyard committee can move forward.

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