Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for a comprehensive reply. We all recognise the important role he has to fulfil in restoring public confidence in rural Ireland and in areas suffering from social deprivation, perhaps over a long period.

I want to ask about the degree to which the Minister might direct attention to particular areas. Notwithstanding the applications that will be made by various communities throughout the country, it is also important that he identifies projects in particular areas, with a view to restoring the kind of public confidence in all areas, rural and urban, that is required. There has been a tendency in recent years to run down the morale of communities in both urban and rural settings, with obvious detrimental effects on encouraging investment. What issues might the Minister focus on to restore public confidence in those areas?

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