Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)

Both Cloughjordan and Silvermines in my constituency need playground facilities for young children. Both of these local villages have dedicated, skilled and ambitious voluntary committees that have been working on this for a number of years. Both have secured lands, namely, the Thomas MacDonagh Memorial Garden in Cloughjordan and the parish field in Silvermines. Both have considerable sums of money fundraised, both have acquired planning permission and both have detailed designs published. The Silvermines committee has already shown the public its plans. Cloughjordan is doing that this weekend from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. in St. Kieran's Hall. Both communities have very excited children who want their own local playground, but both have major problems accessing funding. The social inclusion stream of LEADER for north Tipperary has been maxed out and no other funding options are coming close to the funding required. Both playground groups have applied for funding through CLÁR and others, but have not been successful to date through no fault of their own. Considering the next Common Agricultural Policy is not due until 2028, I am asking for funding from the Exchequer to go into those empty streams to continue that funding in rural Ireland and get us our playgrounds in Cloughjordan and Silvermines.

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