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

There is not going to be much left in rural Ireland now. The banks are going, the post offices have gone and many of the pubs are closed. There is not going to be much left. It is like the 2040 plan, where everything is geared towards the five big cities with planning, housing, money and all kinds of infrastructure, and rural Ireland is forgotten about. It must be recognised that if one lives in a place like Shronahiree in Glencar or Derrynafeana or the Black Valley and the bank in Killorglin closes down, where is one to go then? Likewise in north Kerry with Tralee, Castleisland and Abbeyfeale. Where did the people of Knockafreaghane, Meenanare and Brosna go to, only to Abbeyfeale. They have massive distances to travel now. If one puts those placenames into a computer to see where is the nearest Bank of Ireland branch, it would take one a day to get there and back.

The Minister has a role to play here. The people are entitled to services. The people in rural Ireland are entitled to the same services as the people in Dublin 4. I heard one Deputy say that this will also have an impact in Dublin but if one takes a walk around the streets of Dublin, one will pass three or four different banks in ten minutes. That is massively different to the set up in rural Kerry. I am asking the Minister to realise that he can do something here. He has a share in Bank of Ireland. Surely he can demand of it or at least sit down and talk with it. I want to say to the backbenchers of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that they will have to collar their Ministers and their Taoiseach in their party rooms and tell them that this is not good enough for rural Ireland.

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