Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The draft review will be published for environmental assessment in the coming weeks. We will welcome everyone's engagement on it. There is a lot of commentary about Dublin Port and being able to move it at the flick of a switch or turn it into a strategic zone for housing. It plays a hugely important role in our economy. Given the trade and logistics network that has evolved over decades, it will continue to play a strategic role from a trade perspective. We need to complement that with ambition in the south east, in Rosslare and Waterford, as well as looking at the whole Atlantic corridor from a rail perspective. The strategic rail review will offer opportunities to grow that. The rail freight strategy from Irish Rail is very clear on that ambition and their strategic initiatives to grow enhanced regional connectivity and opportunities through rail freight, on which we are ambitious. All of these initiatives through the strategic rail review and the wider consideration of ports policy will provide opportunities for Waterford and other regions over the coming period.

See this speech in context