James Bannon (Fine Gael)

The truth hurts. This is a small gain for Longford when one considers that a number of social welfare services have been relocated from Longford to Donegal. As usual, the Government gives with a huge fanfare on the one hand and then takes away with the other. A number of issues have not been addressed in the constituency of Longford-Westmeath and, given their importance to the development of the midlands, urgent action needs to be taken. The rail link between Athlone, Moate and Mullingar, to which the Leader referred, is totally under utilised.