Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday, young people from across Ireland, who are involved in Macra na Feirme, began a 14-hour walk to Government Buildings from Athy. They are taking a stand for rural Ireland. For many of us born and raised there, there is nowhere else we would rather live. In fact, there is nowhere else we see our futures. Macra, in its campaign, is raising eight key issues around access to affordable housing and to healthcare and also the issue for young farmers about quotas on accessing supports. Today, young people are sending a very clear message to this Government. We are telling it we want a future in our rural communities and the Government must act to make that happen.

Clearly, rural Ireland has been let down. If it had not been, Macra would not have been doing what it did yesterday and what it is doing today. How does the Taoiseach intend to respond to the really determined and ambitious demand for change from this generation?

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