Seanad debates

Wednesday, 7 October 2009

5:00 pm

Photo of Labhrás Ó MurchúLabhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

I did, as Gaeilge. Chuala an Seanadóir O'Reilly é sin.

When I spoke on the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill earlier I made many of the same points as Senator O'Reilly made just now. It is vital that young people investing their confidence in rural Ireland, which is different to what it was 30 or 40 years ago, should be facilitated, particularly if they want to build houses on their land. The social dimension to this is that grandparents look after the grandchildren and children look after their parents. This keeps people out of nursing homes and hospitals. I agree with Senator O'Reilly in this respect. I hope the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill we debated earlier and the upcoming ministerial guidelines will keep this aspect in mind.

I was particularly taken by Mr. Jack Roche, chairman of the Rural Transport Network. At a recent presentation, I heard him on the radio with a fine rich Cork accent and I was impressed with the common sense he spoke when he put emphasis on what the scheme meant to the lives of people, not just in terms of security but their overall quality of life. What came to mind was a famous debate on "The Late Late Show" when Monsignor Horan appeared on the panel, ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis. It was put to him that we were spending much money on developing Knock Airport when the project seemed like a white elephant. I remember him describing himself as an ordinary, modest, humble parish priest and stating it would cost less to run Knock Airport than to put one carriage on the DART line and maintain and service it. The point he was making was that when there was an argument about something that benefited rural Ireland, we should not always feel it did not require the same attention as what happened in the cities. Human beings are the same everywhere and people have challenges, whether they live in a built up or rural area. For that reason, when the pilot rural transport scheme was initiated in 2003, we immediately saw a demand for it because 151,000 journeys were taken. In 2008 that number had risen to 1.2 million. The amount of Government investment rose from €3 million at the beginning to €11 million in 2008 and further money was allocated in 2009. The pilot scheme proved beyond a shadow of a doubt the need for a rural transport scheme and that people wished to use it.

I know issues arise with regard to the rural transport scheme which we should not ignore. In some cases there is great value for money in the number of journeys taken but in others the administrative costs are particularly high with regard to output. Therefore, it would be wrong to generalise and state every aspect of the scheme is as it should be. We should examine the findings of what we can view as a five year pilot scheme and successful models should be exported to areas in which value for money is not given. This does not name or denigrate anybody; it just shows that in certain cases initiative was shown by some to ensure there was value for money and that the money was invested and used in the manner intended, which was to provide a cost saving, valuable and worthwhile rural transport scheme. I cannot speak on behalf of the Government on this matter but we should not take for granted that it will happen. On a previous occasion when the Minister, Deputy Ó Cuív, discussed the rural transport scheme in the House, he pointed out that there was more than one Department involved. While the scheme was rolled out by the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, it also seems to have a bearing on the Department of Transport. It is a matter of rationalisation, with which we would all agree.

We are living in an age when it should never more be said of us that we took for granted that if we provided money, any result was acceptable. However, in terms of human and social considerations, any suggestion the rural transport scheme can be done without - in whatever form it takes or whoever is responsible for running it - is not possible. It was bad enough when the amenity was not available but to have it and then have it removed would be a devastating blow to rural Ireland.

I know how well intentioned this Private Members' motion is because Senator Buttimer was 100% correct to state that as we canvassed on the Lisbon treaty the discussion was not always about the bigger issues; it was about the ordinary day-to-day facilities and amenities available and how necessary they were. I am not an advocate for drink or pubs but I know the new drink laws had a terrible impact on rural Ireland. People who went out for their usual pint of Guinness and drove home on a country road could no longer do so; to all intents and purposes, if they were elderly and living on their own, they were imprisoned. I do not state this is directly related to the matter but President McAleese made reference to the isolation felt by people in rural Ireland, which leads to issues of suicide, a sense of having no security in the home and no contact with the outside community. We are all aware and conscious of the issue of road safety but we must keep these rural issues in mind.

When the rural transport scheme was introduced, it was ridiculed to a certain degree, as if it were intended to bring people to and from the pub, but it was about much more than this. From the open day we held and the campaign we ran on the retention of the scheme, it is quite clear that a good infrastructure is in place which we must maintain. We must not take for granted that it will disappear and we should pool our ideas on how we can maintain and structure it in the future. The Minister of State, Deputy Áine Brady, knows the needs and strengths of rural Ireland and I have no doubt she listens to us with a willing ear and will bring our views to the table where they will matter.

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