Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Under the rural development policy for 2021 to 2025 there are 152 policy measures in the framework plan. For example, policy measure 25 is to promote awareness, and the use, of remote working hubs. That is a problem in my constituency. There are three hubs in my constituency but approximately 50% of the people in one of the areas involved do not have access to broadband. There is a community centre that is serving a huge population. There are 900 children in the local primary schools. As one can imagine, there is also a large number of children in secondary school and college. There is a facility available but we cannot get a hub there. That is Inniscarra parish. It is likewise with Mourneabbey and Glenville. These are things we need to develop. Is there any proposal for the provision of funding for the roll-out of additional hubs in areas where there will not be broadband for the next five years? Broadband will not be available in many of these areas until 2025 or 2026.

Policy measure 30 is to deliver a suite of new measures to support the development of social enterprise in rural areas. Again, that is very important one for job creation. When will we see the overall delivery in respect of these two measures? These are just two of the 152 policy areas in this framework.

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