Rónán Mullen (Independent)

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire don dara uair inniu. Tagann sé as mo pharóiste féin. Cé nach bhfuil sé iargúlta, tá sé cinnte go bhfuil sé faoin tuath. I strongly support the thrust of the motion and congratulate the Senators who tabled it. I endorse any sensible motion which seeks to support rural Ireland in these troubled times. The past year has been one of the toughest in living memory for farm families as rural Ireland has reeled from a series of economic shocks, any one of which would have been serious but arriving together they have had a devastating impact on farm incomes and rural communities.

When the property bubble burst, the economist Ronnie O'Toole predicted that it would have a far greater impact on rural Ireland than on urban areas and he was right. In many areas of the west off-farm income from working on building sites which had become the main source of income for many rural families disappeared overnight. Just a few years ago we spoke about how milk prices had increased dramatically, driven by, of all things, the Chinese discovery of the health benefits of milk and the less healthy delights of a newly acquired taste for cheeseburgers. However, in 2008 a contaminated infant milk formula scandal destroyed the trade and the global credit crunch caused a collapse in commodity prices, leading to farmers being paid less than what it cost to produce milk.

The global credit crunch also led to a 20% drop in the value of sterling, making Irish food exports to the United Kingdom 20% more expensive and putting the Irish food industry and particularly smaller Irish companies under a great deal of pressure. I mention this as a context for the crisis, with the near collapse of the Irish banking system, and how it has dried up credit and working capital at the worst possible time. We find ourselves in a difficult situation, which is why the McCarthy report makes its many radical swingeing proposals, including the recommendation that the rural transport initiative be eliminated to save the princely sum of €11 million. To put this figure in context, the Government overspends by €400 million a week. Taken in that context, €11 million is a modest sum.

By way of comparison, data centre expert Stephen McCarron of Dublin-based Hosting365 examined the number of computer servers being run by the Government. He estimates the Government could save the Exchequer at least €23 million per annum through virtualisation, reducing energy costs and carbon emissions but with no negative impact on services or employment levels in the public service. This is the type of issue we should examine when it comes to making cuts. Oscar Wilde's phrase about the cynic being the person who knows the price of everything but the value of nothing comes to mind when cuts are proposed for the rural transport initiative. There is a danger of seeing a scheme solely for its economic value and forgetting about its social importance and necessity.

I was delighted Senator Labhrás Ó Murchú referred to Monsignor James Horan, a man who exemplified the pioneering and can-do spirit, and his typical response in which he cleverly and craftily compared the differences in attitudes towards investment in urban areas and rural areas. I will not remind my Fine Gael colleagues about their comments about a "foggy, boggy site" in Mayo. Whenever I think of Monsignor Horan and his clever response, I am reminded of a similar one attributed to the late Pope John Paul II. When he decided to have a swimming pool installed in the Vatican, officials in the Curia were worried about how expensive it would be. To this, the late pontiff said it would less expensive than another conclave. This kind of crafty logic served Monsignor Horan well when he argued the case for his much cherished airport project.

This is the type of spirit needed in rural Ireland that faces so many different challenges which many in urban areas do not understand. Accessibility of services, the near availability of schools and the availability of services for older people are taken for granted by many in urban areas. These can become more of a challenging reality in rural Ireland. We must examine expenditure on facilitating the quality of life in rural Ireland through a different kind of lens than just the mere economic one.

The impact of cuts to the rural transport initiative will be out of all proportion to the amount of moneys saved. According to a Department of Transport report, transport is a serious unmet need for many people living in rural Ireland and it has been identified as a key factor underlying levels of exclusion in rural areas. Estimates derived from the 2002 national rural transport survey suggested as many as 380,000 people in rural areas perceive themselves as having unmet transport needs. Certain key target groups are also especially vulnerable to a lack of transport, including older people, young people, people on low incomes, and people with mobility, sensory or cognitive impairments. Combined, these groups alone account for an estimated 200,000 people of the persons reporting unmet needs.

Demographic trends, in particular overall population growth and changes in the age profile, suggest the numbers of people with unmet rural transport needs are likely to persist. Projections indicate an estimated 450,000 rural dwellers could have unmet transport needs by 2021, for example, including 250,000 people in key target groups. In short the McCarthy report is suggesting cuts at a time when the need for rural transport is growing and indeed is greater than ever.

The current rural transport is cost effective which frankly is far more than can be said of much expenditure figures in the Government and Oireachtas which has dominated debate in recent days. The rural transport programme received just €9 million in funding from the Department of Transport in 2008, with a further €2 million coming from the national development plan. Yet operators in the network provided over 1.2 million passenger journeys in rural areas where people have simply no other public or private transport options to go about their business.

The rural transport programme is also a critical source of local employment with 80 drivers directly employed by programme companies and a further 657 privately employed drivers. According to Pobal's performance and impact report, the programme met or exceeded all of its key performance indicators and targets.

It is not easy to cost the impact of social isolation on the elderly in rural Ireland. However, I would hazard a guess that it is far higher than €11 million a year. The editorial of one regional paper put it well when it described the rural transport programme as follows:

It is a vital link for elderly and isolated people in rural areas, a social outlet, something that helps them maintain their independence and confidence, something for them to look forward to once or twice a week and a reason to keep on living life to the full. For these people, many of whom would have worked hard all their lives and paid their dues, it is a deserved support and service.

I have no doubt the Government will need to make significant cuts to expenditure. We must, however, cut the fat rather than the muscle, cut the waste endemic in the system rather than modest and targeted programmes which deliver a significant return on investment. The elderly have paid their dues to society from years of hard work and service and should not be betrayed now. In a case study of the Meath accessible transport project, the social value of the project is evident. One user described it as the best programme introduced in her area, how if it were not in place she would not be able to collect her pension and how she hoped it would last for a long time.

Tá sé ró-éasca bheith soiniciúil - á rá nach bhfuil an t-airgead againn, nó nach féidir linn é a chur ar fáil a thiulleadh - faoin sórt dearcadh sin. Tá an eacnamaíocht ann chun cabhrú le daoine. Níl na daoine ann ar mhaithe leis an eacnamaíocht - is a mhalairt atá fíor. Caithfimid díriú isteach ar tábhacht sóisialta na seirbhísí beaga seo. Nuair atáimid ag déanamh na ciorruithe atá riachtanach, ba chóir dúinn bheith cinnte go bhfuilimid ag díriú isteach ar droch-chaiteachas agus ar cur amú airgead. Thug mé sampla maidir le ríomhaireacht. Luaigh mé roinnt earnálacha ina féidir linn airgead a spáráil. Is féidir €23 milliún a shábháil le athrú sa chóras ríomhaireachta agus le gearradh siar ar chaiteachas fuinnimh, srl. Má táimid ciallmhar leis na ciorruithe sin, beidh go leor airgead againn le caitheamh ar seirbhísí tábhachtacha, ar nós an chóras iompair tuaithe. Ní cheart dúinn grúpaí éagsúla sna áiteanna iargúlta a ligint síos. Ba cheart dúinn an dea-aidhm atá laistiar den chóras iompair tuaithe - seirbhís a sholáthar do dhaoine atá i gcontúirt aonarachas sóisialta - a choinneáil. Tréaslaím leis na Seanadóirí a chuir an rún seo faoin ár mbráid.