Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his reply. Will he make a strong argument to Government on the need to provide additional funding in the mid-term capital review to meet the need to have a particular focus on and an urgency to addressing the infrastructural deficit in the Border region, particularly the road network? As I mentioned earlier, unfortunately we do not have a rail network and movement of persons and goods, including goods for export, have to be by road. Public representatives, the Minister as a member of Government, colleagues and civic society in general will spend a lot of time over the next two years discussing issues pertaining to Brexit as well as having many discussions with the British Government and at European Union level. Many of the issues are outside the competence of Government to decide. One thing within the competence of Government is to decide where national expenditure should go and to seek particular EU funding for infrastructural development. I previously asked the Minister to put forward a case through the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on the need to seek cohesion funding post-2020 given the specific needs of the Border region and the adverse impacts Brexit will have on that region and economy.

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