Seanad debates
Wednesday, 3 December 2003
Order of Business. - Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Powers and Functions) Bill 2003: Second Stage.
The islanders are the people who should decide how best to develop that product. They do not need a great many people who do not have to live there attempting to curtail reasonable development. There is a perception that Aran is like O'Connell Street on a fine day. If one leaves the main road on Inis Mór and travels to Gort na gCapall or Bun Gabhla, there is plenty of solitude and beauty to be found. There is a small stretch of road between Cill Rónáin and Dun Aonghasa which serves a reasonable amount of traffic in the summer. That is understandable. As Minister, I have provided money for the development of roads to places which will allow people to avoid any contact with other humans. There is a great deal of space on Inis Mór to permit these initiatives. It is wrong to give the impression that there is a metropolis on the island because there is a reasonable amount of traffic on a short stretch of road during the summer.
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