Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome all of the grants that were announced last year. I hope the same will be provided again this year. In fairness, when moneys are provided to community organisations, they use the funding very effectively and deliver very good services. One of the areas that needs some focus is new communities where there is a huge growth in housing. We are not doing enough forward planning when developments go through the planning process to put facilities in place and to identify a suitable location. Could there be far more co-ordination between Departments and local authorities on forward planning for community facilities? I have two such areas in my constituency. Even though I have a big rural area, I also have a big urban area – Glanmire and Blarney. They are two areas where there is a real need for the development of sporting and community facilities. Without these facilities, we cannot provide the space for young people and older people in particular. I ask that there would be co-ordination in that whole area.

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