Terry Brennan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Jimmy Deenihan, recently announced under the 2014 local and regional museums scheme that the County Museum, Dundalk, County Louth, would receive funding of €5,000, the Old Drogheda Society would receive €4,600 and the Highlanes Gallery in Drogheda would receive €2,600. The scheme is designed to support small and medium-sized museums across the country. Projects funded under the scheme should seek to enhance the cultural offering of museums, to encourage greater access to museums and to promote the use of museums as tourism resources in the locality or region.

I acknowledge the second greatest cycle racing event, the Giro d'Italia, which took place at the weekend. It was a tremendous sporting success and a wonderful spectacle as they sped through the streets of south Armagh and Dundalk at speeds in excess of 40 kilometres per hour. It was spectacular, and it is fitting that I acknowledge the part played by the local town council, the local Garda, the Red Cross, Cuchulainn Cycling Club and the many volunteers who made this a worldwide spectacle. It was viewed by millions of people across the world and hopefully the land of legends - County Louth and south Armagh - will gain in tourism figures in the years to come. Well done to all. It shows what working together as a community can do for one's town, county and region.