Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for the encouraging words. I will state again the importance of what the Department of Rural and Community Development has been doing for community groups throughout the country. It has been the backbone of the revival of a lot of parishes where they had facilities but did not have the wherewithal to get them running and back into use. We now see a lot of that. I have seen it right across my own constituency, where pristine facilities are now in place, and the question is how we keep them going and keep them up to the standard that was created with the help of the Department. I acknowledge the work that was carried out by the previous Minister, Deputy Ring in making sure communities throughout the country received the support they deserve. They appreciate it as well, which is the important thing. We want to make sure they are protected through this phase of the crisis we have at the moment.

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