Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We have had a huge amount of schemes such as the sports capital programme, the town and village renewal scheme, the REDZ programme and the rural recreation scheme that have been targeted at rural Ireland. This is very welcome and we need to continue with this progress to ensure that we are delivering for these areas. It is amazing to go through small villages such as Multyfarnham, Moate, Ballinalee and Granard that have received huge funding that provides key infrastructure into these areas. It is also noteworthy that when funding is provided, communities can add funding to it from their own local authority to undertake real, large-scale projects in their areas. One can see safety measures such as pedestrian crossings outside schools and key measures that provide huge infrastructure for areas. I welcome the efforts being made by the team in the Department and I hope we can continue with this progress to ensure we have good news for rural communities.

See this speech in context