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

Recently released data from the EU as part of the EU regional competitiveness index lay bare the severity of the infrastructure deficit in the west and the north west. These regions' competitiveness has been undermined by the failure of the Government and successive Governments to invest in the west and the north west. Out of the 234 designated regions across the EU, the north-west region ranks at 218th for infrastructure. This places the region in the bottom 7%, alongside some of the poorest regions in the EU such as Romania, Latvia and Bulgaria. Decades of failure to invest in the vital infrastructure needed to enable the potential of the western seaboard can no longer be tolerated. The crumbs from the table are not enough. They will not feed the ambition of those of us who truly understand the opportunity cost and the potential of the Atlantic economic corridor. What is the Government going to do to address these independently verified and shocking figures?

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