I acknowledge that the Border, midlands and western region is behind the indicative target for infrastructural investment set out in the plan as published. This reflects the fact that the infrastructure gridlock and bottlenecks are most severe in the southern and eastern region, especially in the greater Dublin area, and that priority has had to be accorded to major projects in this region. It might, however, be noted that there have been positive economic developments in the BMW region. Over the period 2000-03, employment growth in the BMW region was 3.3% as compared to 1.8% in the southern and eastern region. In addition, percentage population growth in both regions between 1996 and 2002 was almost identical. Thanks to the successful negotiating strategy of the Government at the 1999 Berlin Summit, the BMW region has Objective One status for the period 2000-06, despite its GDP per capita in 2000 being well in excess of the threshold for such status.