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

I am very pleased to have the opportunity to open today’s debate. I launched Our Rural Future in 2021. It is the most ambitious and transformational rural development policy ever introduced by an Irish Government. It is a five-year plan, we are just over two years into its implementation and already we are seeing the hugely positive impact it is having on the ground. As we stand here today we have more people living in rural Ireland than ever before. We have more people working in rural Ireland than ever before. In the history of the State there has never been more investment going into rural communities than under this Government. I know over the course of today’s debate there will be a wide range of issues raised and people will outline their differing views. The Opposition has a job to do and I absolutely appreciate that.

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However, any fair analysis has to recognise these three key indicators: more people living in rural Ireland, more jobs in rural Ireland and more investment in rural Ireland.

I am proud to come from Aghabog in County Monaghan. Aghabog is every bit as rural as it sounds. Rural development is close to my heart as I know it is close to the hearts of many of my colleagues on all sides of the House. I am not going to stand here and pretend there are not challenges in rural Ireland. There are challenges and there are absolutely areas where we need to do more as a Government. I hope we can have a constructive debate that recognises those challenges but also acknowledges the good work that is happening on the ground and the significant investment that is going into our rural communities.

Rural development is a key priority in the programme for Government. Our Rural Future is a policy that was developed using the principle of a place-based approach. This recognises that as rural communities are different, with individual challenges and often unique strengths, there can be no one-size-fits-all approach to rural development. That is why my priority as Minister for Rural and Community Development is to empower communities. I want them to identify their own local development priorities and proposals and support them to meet the ambitions of their communities and reach their full potential. That grassroots, ground-up approach is the cornerstone of the various funding streams that I have put in place across my Department. I might know what is needed in Monaghan but there is no point in my trying to impose something on communities in counties Kerry or Cork. The local people in our towns, villages and parishes throughout the country know what is needed in their own communities. That is why the ideas and proposals under all the funding programmes I have put in place across my Department, whether it is the rural regeneration fund, the town and village renewal scheme, the outdoor recreation fund, CLÁR or the community centre fund, have to come from communities themselves. Under the revised national development plan, capital funding of €962 million is available to support rural and community development projects until 2025. I can genuinely say the one thing I hear from local authorities and community groups all the time is that there has never been more funding available for rural development projects. To date my Department’s rural regeneration and development fund, RRDF, has provided almost €400 million for more than 200 major projects countrywide. Over the past few months alone I have been fortunate enough to visit and open a wide range of completed RRDF projects throughout the country. These include the Banteer Sports Field and Working Hub in County Cork, a state-of-the-art recreational facility developed by the local community; the fantastic Yeats Trail in County Sligo, which will be a huge boost to tourism in the north-west region; the Yard Hub in Abbeyshrule, County Longford which is a wonderful example of an old, derelict building dating back to the 1850s which has been completely renovated and transformed into a remote working hub; the new Trim Cultural Centre and library in County Meath and the beautiful Mount Congreve Estate and Gardens in County Waterford which will be a jewel in the crown for tourism in the south east. This coming Sunday, I look forward to opening Fethard Town Park in County Tipperary which is another fantastic community-led project. These are just a few examples of some of the projects that have been supported with multimillion euro investments by my Department as part of Our Rural Future. I could talk all day about the work we are doing in developing our outdoor recreation amenities. In rural Ireland we are blessed with the natural amenities on our doorstep, be it our mountains, lakes, forests, beaches or bogs. Through our new national outdoor recreation strategy we are investing hugely in developing these amenities and improving access for locals and visitors alike.

Last year I opened the Slieve Bloom Mountain Bike Trail in County Offaly. It was great to meet with the local businesses in the village of Kinnity, ranging from the local coffee shop to the bike rental business that have opened up on foot of that investment. There are stories identical to that throughout the country. There is a new-found appreciation of our great outdoors post-Covid and local economies in rural areas are reaping the benefits. In particular, inland counties that have not traditionally had the same tourism draw as some of our coastal counties are benefiting from the development of these amenities.

The recent census results show population growth in every county for the first time. This reverses a trend of population decline in some rural areas that we have seen for decades. In the past, young people left their local communities in search of work. We now have full employment. There is a job for everybody who wants one. Just a few short years ago did any of us think we would be able to say that? In May alone 1,000 jobs were announced at Dexcom in Athenry, 600 jobs were announced at Analog Devices in Limerick and more than 400 jobs were announced at Boston Scientific in Clonmel. Enterprise Ireland announced record job creation figures for last year and even better, more than 70% of these jobs are outside Dublin. Likewise, the majority of new jobs being created in IDA-supported companies are now in the regions. We can never take this progress for granted.

My thoughts today are with the 650 workers at Tara Mines. Officials from my Department of Social Protection are on the ground in Navan, working with the Department of Enterprise, Louth Meath Education and Training Board, LMETB, and other agencies to ensure the workers get the support they need.

One of the most positive findings of the recent census data was the fact that more than 750,000 workers, almost a third of the entire workforce, are now working remotely. I firmly believe remote working is the game changer for rural communities. Ireland is ahead of the curve internationally on this. We are rolling out the national broadband plan. That is high speed, fibre broadband to the home. It is a future-proofed network. Would I like to see it rolled out faster? Of course I would. In fairness, after delays arising from Covid-19, delivery is ramping up with between 3,000 and 4,000 premises being connected every month. It is a monumental project akin to rural electrification and every bit as important. A few years ago, many people were asking whether it was the right thing to do. Nobody is asking that question now.

One of the key commitments in Our Rural Future is the development of a network of 400 remote working hubs by 2025. My Department has invested more than €150 million in the development of remote working facilities in every county throughout the country. We already have 319 hubs on the Connected Hubs network. Therefore, we are well on course to meet our target of 400 hubs by 2025. I have visited many of these facilities in different parts of the country and they have the potential to deliver so much more to their communities than simply remote working spaces. They are being used as enterprise centres, start-up incubators, creative hubs and much more. Only this morning, along with the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris, I launched a new initiative in conjunction with our technological universities to deliver blended learning courses through the Connected Hubs network. Last year I attended a Cabinet meeting remotely from a hub on Bere Island off the coast of County Cork. Only last week I opened a new gteic hub on Malin Beg in County Donegal. Just to give Members an idea, when driving along the road to Malin Beg the radio signal drops in the car. That is how remote the area is. Yet in that hub in the old school in Malin Beg they have high-speed broadband and a better mobile phone signal than I have in my own house in County Monaghan. The following day I was out on Arranmore Island launching the New Islands policy. I spoke to the managers of the hub there, Séamus and Adrian, and heard stories of young people who have come back from Seattle and people who work for financial services companies in Dublin and they can do it all from the hub on Arranmore. Some of the workers go out at lunch time, jump in the sea and go for a swim. Indeed, the manager said that sometimes a trail of sand leads into the remote working hub. On a sunny day on Arranmore, and it was a lovely day, would I rather be doing that or sitting in traffic on the M50?

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