Joe O'Toole (Independent)

Decisions to be taken this week will be of huge significance for the Ireland of the future. One of those concerns the discussion on fisheries taking place in Brussels this week. We had a debate on that issue in recent weeks and Members showed much interest and commitment and a lot of issues were raised. I would like the Government to know that matters raised in that debate are still important in this House. As far as we are concerned, a wrong decision taken in Brussels, which even maintains the current position, will destroy the Irish fishing industry. I would like that to be communicated to the Government. Jobs are at stake as are progress and industrialisation.

The other issue is the spatial strategy report. I do not know why we must wait a week to debate it. We know the issues and we could discuss the report this afternoon. The report will be reported on and people will take an interest in it this week. It will be reported on in next Monday's local newspapers which will contain the views of elected representatives, including Members of this House. The report will produce a scheme which will plot the course and shape of rural Ireland, in particular, in the future. I worry that while the debate on gateways, hubs and so on takes place, the broad masses of Ireland will be left untouched. Rural areas, which are not towns, main provincial centres or urban areas of cities, will simply be forgotten. That is the way policy is driven. We should make a clear distinction between infrastructure needs and people needs and one should not move irrespective of the other. I would like the spatial strategy to look at the needs of people who live up hill and down dale, in remote areas, in rural communities and in places which need to be represented. We should have that debate today.