Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There is a new community hub in Enfield and many remote working hubs that allow people to live and work in their communities. Deputy English is a big supporter of those projects. I will visit them shortly. They are making a difference. I am going around rural areas and talking to people. I can tell the Deputy that if he had been with me in Abbeyshrule, County Longford, last week, he would have seen how appreciative communities are that we are providing funding to allow them realise their vision and ambition for their communities. We are empowering and helping communities. It is not a top-down but bottom-up approach. When we get the applications, we work with communities to deliver.

On a point of clarification regarding the local improvement schemes, additional funding was given to local authorities that stated they could spend it. If they asked for it in the last round, they got 70% or 80% of what they asked for. If counties Monaghan and Cavan can spend it, all I can say is fair play to them.

See this speech in context