Susan O'Keeffe (Labour) | Oireachtas source

They can offer the life people imagine online but can never lead. We must reimagine towns as offering the authentic version of a life we can lead online. Until we start to realise in our heads and the Civil Service and Government mentality that towns are not what they were, there is no point in restoring them to what they were because it no longer the case. There is a menu of things that could be done locally and immediately. They need to be supported and encouraged, but we must also consider the bigger picture.

What struck me in New York was the High Line, where a train line had been rescued and turned into a park. It was mostly done with private money because several people saw it as an opportunity to showcase New York in a different way. It is only one mile long, but it has captured people's imagination. How do we reinvent the way we live now? It brings green space into a town in a way that we appreciate and that we must value even more. While I was making a small joke at the expense of Senator Ivana Bacik, she and others are dedicated to the idea of cycling and cyclists being made more welcome. Many of my friends and colleagues are working hard with Sligo County Council and other councils to encourage greater awareness of pedestrians and making towns better places to walk around in. We have failed at this in many towns. We still always talk about parking and getting cars into towns. It is about people and getting them to leave their online space and computers and out-of-town places to come into these places because they have rivers, bridges, green spaces and parks. We are lucky in Sligo because we have parks on the edge of the town. We also have adult gyms. They are free and many use them. That is what we must reimagine if we want to see a new life for our towns and cities.

When I lived in Cork quite a number of years ago, the English Market was a place to which I did not go because it did not feel like a place one wanted to be in.

It is now an outstanding of example of something that has been recovered and restored and it has a new sense of purpose and identity. The visit of Queen Elizabeth II gave it a lift but it has to sustain itself beyond a queen's visit.

There are ways in which we can develop our natural heritage. Senator Bacik mentioned Culture Night and Open House. These ideas do not cost money but they show that our towns are places in which to live and that the built heritage is very important. It is a case of joined-up thinking in co-operation with the Minister for Health, in order to encourage healthy living, and with the Minister with responsibility for heritage and culture. We must find better ways to use those spaces. As Senators have said, many small towns are disappearing because we have not reinvented and re-evaluated them.

I thank the Minister of State and Senators and I foresee our revisiting this topic in the future.