Joe Cooney (Clare, Fine Gael)

In Minister of State's own words, the housing crisis is an emergency. The lack of a treatment system in towns and villages is one of the causes of this emergency, yet the money to develop such systems in towns and villages that are not serviced has been sitting in the Department's bank account for the past three years. The county council is clearly committed to delivering this scheme in two towns in Clare. They could be a demonstration for others, as once one county gets under way, others will follow. This is my belief. The alternative is to backtrack on the commitment given by the Minister of State's predecessor, destroy any hope the communities in Broadford and Cooraclare have of a treatment system, and accept that rural towns and villages do not matter and cannot contribute to a solution to the housing crisis. This would be outrageous. Will the Minister of State begin the distribution of the funds from this scheme to local authorities such as Clare County Council, which are committed to delivering this scheme? It is vital infrastructure for those villages that do not have it.

See this speech in context