Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I was delighted to see the Minister in Mayo on Monday. As the Minister did, I commend and acknowledge all the work that has been done there by the project team, particularly by Michael Murphy and Tom Grady from Mayo, Sligo and Leitrim ETB. They have wanted this and worked on it for so many years and it is a long-term project. I was also delighted to see Paddy McGuinness there, who has done so much for further education in Mayo. In the original Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology and everything else, he was a real visionary in his time and I know he got satisfaction from that. I am concerned about the timelines and I am also concerned about people's expectations when announcements are made and when people think it is going to happen. We are probably realistically talking about a five to six-year project. I cannot see students being on the seats in there before 2027. However, it is a start and it shows intent on what needs to happen and what can happen with the ATU in Castlebar as well.

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