Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister. It is his first time in the House since he undertook his new portfolio. No doubt he will continue to bring the flair and enthusiasm to the Department of Transport which he brought to the many other offices he occupied in previous Governments.

In addressing this debate it is important to look at the public transport sector in general. The transport solution for citizens lies in a holistic approach. It would be futile to examine the constituent parts of the transport infrastructure in isolation. It is for this reason the Government decided to bring all transport matters within the remit of a single Department of Transport. This has been a most welcome development and, while the Department has been in existence for only five months, the Minister has made significant progress in terms of defining an overall strategy for the future of transport in a number of areas.

Undoubtedly, investment in transport and particularly transport infrastructure has been limited over the last decade. This is especially evident in rail transport. I now have confidence, however, that the decisions taken by the previous Administration together with the consolidation of all transport matters under the new Department and further investments identified in the national development plan will provide sound transport policy going forward.