Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Tá mé sásta go bhfuil deis agam páirt a ghlacadh sa díospóireacht seo ar ábhar an-tábhachtach. Sílim gurb é seo an cáipéis is tábhachtaí a tháinig os ár gcomhair le cúpla mí anuas. Tá píosa beag bídeach - deich líne nó mar sin - faoin dteideal "Gaeltacht areas" ar leathanach 82 den caipéis seo. Is é sin an méid cur síos ar theanga oifigiúil na tíre seo atá sa cháipéis. Ní mór dom aird an Aire a tharraingt ar sin agus a rá leis gur mhasla é don teanga ar a lán leibhéil, ina measc tábhacht na teanga í féin. Níos mó ná sin, tá tábhacht ag an teanga ó thaobh cúrsaí eacnamaíochta de. Iarraim ar an Aire dul ar ais agus breathnú ar sin. Ba cheart go mbeadh caibidil de leathanach, ar a laghad, sa cáipéis seo faoi teanga naisiúnta na tíre seo agus an tábhacht a bhaineann léi.

I have eight and a half minutes remaining, having begun my contribution in Irish. I welcome this document. It replaces the national spatial strategy, which as the previous speaker said came after the national plan. That national spatial strategy was focused on cities and towns and, as the Minister of State's draft document points out, there were winners and losers. It was not an inclusive document that looked at developing the country in a sustainable way not only in Dublin but across the regions. The previous plan also was not based on any statutory footing and there was no investment plan. I welcome those positive changes and the attempt to look at the country on a more long-term basis. There are many positives in this document. One could not find fault with a substantial amount of it in terms the positive language used in it and what it aspires to achieve. The word "sustainable" is used throughout the document.

However, I have heard Deputies speak earlier about people objecting and that people must become involved. My experience in my time as a local councillor and as a Member of this House is that people need to be heard. The people of Galway, not me, and I have repeated this ad nauseam, led the way in recycling, and we followed. The people of Galway forced the people to listen. My experience, therefore, is not one of people objecting. My experience is that of active citizens wanting to participate, and they see the problems quicker than we do. On the ground in Galway, we are constantly facing flooding, the effects of climate change and so on and I would like to put aside the myth that people object. People are not being heard.

I dealt with the Gaeltacht. If we look at Galway, interestingly, they have picked a case study of Letterfrack on page 72, with which I am delighted. It states: "Based in Letterfrack ... and established in 1971, Connemara West plc is a rural community development organisation that has created and delivered innovative rural development initiatives" and so on. It is wonderful to see that included in the plan. That organisation on the ground is struggling to get the ear of a Minister.

4 o’clock

They want to expand and to bring in more American students and colleges but they are struggling to get the ear of the relevant Minister. I know that has been going on for the last six months. It is great that it is in but let us have some action on the ground.

Galway city is a case where the dream and the reality can be contrasted. Currently, it has a population of 80,000 and three third level institutions. Its population swells to well over 100,000 with students and tourists. The prediction is that it will rise to 124,000 by 2040, which is 22 or 23 years away. Pages 58 and 59 of the framework document list key future growth enablers for Galway. It has been said that Galway is choking with traffic. It certainly has a traffic problem, which is the result of a complete lack of vision by city management, the IDA - I will come back to that point - and successive Governments failing to take a hands-on approach to the city. I am a proud Galwegian. It is a marvellous city and I invite everybody to visit. The problems that have been created could have been avoided and can still be resolved. Various chapters of the framework document address light rail, particularly for Dublin. Galway is crying out for a light rail solution. We have had presentations on it at council level from a number of people on a committee, including businesspeople and others who have worked in Galway and know the problems. The proposal is being ignored by management in Galway, by the vast majority of politicians on the ground and by the Government. If I had the Minister of State's ear today, I would say to him that if he is really serious about sustainable development and embracing population change - as I am - he should consider Galway as a city for light rail. It could help balance the rate of development between Dublin, which is out all proportion to the rest of the country, and Galway. Galway could happily grow into a city of 150,000 with proper planning.

This leads me to the issue of planning in Galway. We have prime sites. We have Ceannt Station with 14 acres of land in the middle of the city. Besides that we have the docks with I forget how many acres. However, there is no master plan. Ceannt Station is going ahead with its own plan which, I might add, is developer led. The docks are also developer led and there is also a separate development on the Headford Road. There is no overall master plan from the local authority. There is no city architect leading it. It is vital that the Government take a hands-on approach to this. On top of that we have an airport that was bought and that is no longer functioning, where there are 114 acres. All of these sites are crucial to the future sustainable development of the city.

The developer-driven plans have an emphasis on office space to the detriment of housing units. I have repeatedly said that we have a housing crisis in Galway. There are at least 13,000 people on a waiting list since 2002. They cannot access a home nor a house on the private market, under the housing assistance payment scheme, HAP, or under the city council. The city council stopped building in 2009 and is only building 14 houses this year. I am using my time to highlight the opportunities in Galway and to warn against the repetition of past mistakes in respect of developer-led development without vision, without a master plan and without an integrated solution that would allow for housing, business and light rail.

The IDA has played a Trojan part in bringing employment and jobs to Galway, as I have said at the Committee of Public Accounts. However, it has done so on a single site, which has created huge traffic problems and left the city council struggling. In addition, there is no park-and-ride facility in Galway although it has been on the city development plan since 2005. It has never been implemented. There are sustainable solutions in Galway. It is an example of a city that should be looked at as a model if we are seriously interested in sustainable development.

In the minute I have left I would like to point to the absence of any policy in the framework document on the islands of our country. There is absolutely no mention of them. Our islands are gallantly struggling to survive through co-operatives and various organisations. Generally I welcome the vision in the document. It is the operation on the ground that is in question, and the fact that the damage will be done before we ever get to implement this. There is a lack of items in the plan in respect of the Gaeltacht and the Irish language, and absolutely no policy on the islands. I am sure we will have another chance to discuss this when the plan comes out.

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