Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I again condemn the dropping of the Shannon LNG project, which will come back to bite this Government and future Governments because of the security we would have had from that vital infrastructure. It has been thrown out the window quite simply because it was demanded by the Green Party upon entering into government. A very high price will be paid by the Irish people with regard to that issue in the future.

Over the next few months, we have to ensure proper funding is secured and put in place, now more than ever before. Providing a proper rural environmental protection scheme, REPS, and a proper retirement scheme are in the programme for Government, and funding for them will be part of the next few months of negotiations as we deal with our counterparts in Europe. Funding is in place at present to be allocated to fishermen, and that has to be dealt with. There are fishermen operating out of Kenmare Bay, the Cromane harbour and bay, Tralee Bay and Dingle Bay.

These people deserve to be treated properly. They deserve to know whether the funding is there, when it can be distributed and how it is going to be distributed. We are hearing much about this issue, but the people who need this money, and need it now, are not getting it. Regardless of whether a person is a fisherman, a farmer or a small businessperson, the decisions and the speed of these decisions in the coming days, weeks and months will be of paramount importance. I urge the Minister of State to take this role very seriously because many people are relying on what happens in the next couple of months and they are relying on us as politicians to come up here and demand answers from the Minister of State and his Government, and I thank him very much for answering these questions.

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