Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The area in question has grown exponentially since the era when the Minister lived nearby. Approximately 10,000 people are now living in 3,000 homes in this pocket of Navan. As a growing town, Navan needs substantial attention when it comes to jobs, especially considering that one of the main employers in the area, Tara Mines, is in a precarious position because it is involved in the extraction of zinc, which is a finite resource. There were no IDA Ireland site visits to County Meath in the first quarter of this year. There were just eight such visits in all of last year. This pales into insignificance by comparison with our neighbours in County Westmeath, where there were 36 such visits, and in County Louth, where there were 24 such visits. The Minister spoke about investment in County Meath. The strategy in the county must stretch beyond securing back-office facilities for Facebook in Clonee. We need to see investment in the heart of our county. We need to ensure there are quality jobs in the areas where people are being housed under the national planning framework strategy.

One of these questions relates to social facilities. I have asked the Minister to ensure her Department liaises with Meath County Council in this regard. I do not want to confuse the two issues. Two questions I tabled separately have been grouped. There is scope within the IDA Ireland business park in Johnstown for the release of some of the land that adjoins a residential area in which there are 3,000 homes. This would facilitate the development of football fields and social amenities. My colleague on Meath County Council, Councillor Tommy Reilly, has raised this issue and has been working diligently with the council's enterprise section and with IDA Ireland. I ask the Minister to work with her Department and IDA Ireland to help Johnstown Football Club, which was founded in 2004, to extend its facilities. The only open lands that are available in this part of Navan are the excess lands in the IDA Ireland park. I ask the Minister to help those involved with the football club to realise their dream of providing additional facilities for young people in the locality.

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