Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her reply. I thank her also for visiting Tipperary. She visited Carrick-on-Suir, Clonmel, Tipperary town and went on to some towns in the north of the county. Towns like Nenagh have got major funding and we do not begrudge them that but Carrick-on-Suir has been devastated by lack of industry for decades. Cahir has good employment. It is a beautiful town and indeed the new King visited there in spring of this year. It is a big tourist town and the county council has put huge work into car parking and redevelopment of the square, though everybody might not agree with it and I have my own concerns about the parking issues. Roscrea is also a town that has been hammered and has not got any major investment. These are the kind of towns that, as I have said before, must get some of this funding because they are falling off the ladder if they cannot get the funding. We cannot have it all for the main towns; it is a rural redevelopment fund. I look forward to a favourable outcome for the three applications from Tipperary of the 42 submitted nationally. We hope there will be good news for Tiobraid Árann and good news for Carrick-on-Suir, Cahir and Roscrea.

See this speech in context