Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am very honoured to be able to make a short contribution to this debate. I am very pleased that Deputy Eamon Ó Cuív has introduced the Bill as we have a common interest in many of the islands. I remember opening a pier in Inis Meáin when I was previously in government. I am also familiar with Inishbofin where I would be shamed forever if I did not get to speak on the introduction of the Bill.

We support the Bill and the development of the islands. They are hugely significant places in the national psyche and culture. In some ways that is the case because they are measurable. The very nature of the geographic limits that exist on islands mean the communities are in some way set aside and it behoves us to look after them and to develop them as an example of what we can do in every community in the country. The proposed Bill is important in terms of how we treat islanders in the democratic electoral system, but it should be symbolic of a wider investment that we are willing to make.

It behoves us in particular to look at how we can create work on the islands that would allow their communities to grow. The population on too many islands has shrunk. There has been a consistent decline in island populations in the past 150 years. If we could turn that around and show how we could create an economic model of development on the islands, it could provide us with a model we could use elsewhere.

I know very well the island of Inishbofin off the Galway coast, not the Donegal Inishbofin. It is an interesting place. The great Green economist, Richard Douthwaite, who knew the island, always saw it as an example of how we could measure sustainability. In a sense, one can measure everything going on and coming off the island. The islands were very self-sufficient until recent years but now they import a huge amount of their basic needs for everyday life. We must investigate how we could turn the islands into models of sustainable economic development and create a mixture of jobs in tourism, fishing, farming and digital services where distance does not become an issue. We could measure and be scientific in devising a model that could apply in every community, in particular in the west, south west and north west. We must invest in that but we must be clever in the investment. It is a case of investment in people more than anything else. Island people have great capability and flexibility. They can turn their hand to a whole variety of different tasks. I refer to fixing things, engineering, farming, fixing engines and looking after visitors all in the one day. We must nurture, develop and protect the skills island people have.

I am very pleased to say a few words on behalf of the Green Party in support of what Deputy Ó Cuív is trying to do. I look forward to the growing prosperity of the islands. We live on the west coast of Europe, the very edge of Europe, but we must not see it as the periphery, the backward end of Europe but the cutting edge of Europe. The islands are a fantastic place to live and there is a very strong, welcoming culture. We must get this right because it could be a symbol for how the island as a whole could be developed. We are all island people. Looking after the islands is the first step in looking after the entire island of Ireland.

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