Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

While the south east makes up 9% of the population of the State, only 3% of IDA Ireland jobs that were created over the last seven years have been in the south-east region. Only 2.2% of the Ireland 2040 capital investment in higher education is due to be spent in the south east. I am aware that Wexford is different again; the live register figure for Wexford in July was 15.5%. Wexford is by far the worse off of those counties in the south-east region. I honestly believe that the statistics bear out the fact that we are one of the top three most deprived counties in the State currently. There is a real need for cross party co-operation to address this. There is a need for some really proactive work across the Departments to change that. Wexford has been a deprived county for a long time and this is directly linked to the fact that we have the highest suicide rate in the State for the last three years. The Minister will be aware that mental health challenges and deprivation are very strongly linked. Might there be an appetite for cross-party co-operation to look at the realities of the situation in Wexford? It did not start with this Government: umpteen Governments have failed to do this. It would be a powerful exercise on the part of the Minister's Government if it were to do this.

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