Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

Absolutely. We will work with all the Departments on this. There is no point in us making this level of investment in rural communities unless we can encourage younger people to come back. I share the Deputy's frustration and agree with what he said about educating younger people. We must ensure they have the opportunities to bring them back.

I point to the level of investment in Offaly in projects such as the regeneration of the Tesco site in Edenderry, which is a €12.2 million investment under the RRDF. A total of €588,000 has been provided in aid to community centres. Some €8.6 million will be provided under the LEADER programme between now and 2027. A total of €250,000 has been provided for town and village renewal in Ferbane. Those are a mix of projects across the county aimed at improving the vibrancy of the economy of the local areas. Collectively, they represent a very significant investment in the county by my Department. We will continue to make those levels of investment.

I look forward to the national rural youth assembly in September to get the views of young people directly on what we can do better to keep them in their areas after they have had their education and travelled, when they are ready to settle. We must let them come back and facilitate them to come home.

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