Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I did not claim, nor do I believe, that everything is rosy in the garden of Wexford. That is not what I said. I appreciate that there are long-standing problems in Wexford. As Deputy Walllace knows, I lived there for a few months while I was a hospital doctor. I got to know the county and liked it a lot. It has a lot to offer. It has not done as well is it should have done for decades now and has a lot of the problems that the Deputy mentioned. It is encouraging that unemployment is now falling in the county and I do not think anyone is denying that. I have given examples of some of the things that my Department is doing.

There are other important things happening. Deputy Wallace will be aware of the investment in the Wexford road infrastructure which is crucial to driving economic growth. The very important Enniscorthy and New Ross bypasses are pressing ahead. There have been other very good road investments in the county.

Deputy Wallace will be familiar with the broadband plan produced the other day. There are a lot of yellow areas, that is, areas with no high speed broadband, in Wexford which will benefit from intervention. There is the potential for Rosslare Port to become a more important sea facility because we may, depending on trade arrangements with Britain, need far more direct links with France. There is potential in that for Rosslare in particular.

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