Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Projects in the national development plan are the responsibility of the TII or some other body to develop, propose and move forward. We continually hear that the Minister cannot interfere in these projects because someone else is doing them. It is a case of God bless it and good luck to it but the Minister cannot get involved. That is basically the answer. The Minister then arrives at a meeting where he tells members of a local authority that a project is in the county development plan, a public consultation is under way and it is in the national development plan and Project Ireland 2040. He says it is here and is committed to but we are not doing it.

That is basically what he said. There is a contradiction there. Either the Minister can say we are not doing something because he has taken a set against it, or he cannot. I would like to know which it is. Does the Minister have the power to do that? Can we have all of the consultants' energy put into developing these plans, setting out all of these infrastructural proposals and then somebody can come along and say: "You know, I don't think that's going to happen"?

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