Denis Landy (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the granting of planning permission for a new greenway or cycleway between Carrick-on-Suir and Clonmel. This has been funded through the national infrastructure package of Exchequer funding to the tune of €1.9 million. It presents a great opportunity for part of the south east to develop a new tourism product. It is most welcome in an area that has a strong tradition of cycling as it is the home of Seán Kelly, who was the number-one cyclist in the world for many years. Contrary to some reports, the funding is actually national funding and does not come from "that crowd over in Europe", as said in other fora. It is actually coming from the Irish Exchequer, which is investing money to create a tourism product in the south east which, it is hoped, will create 80 direct jobs and many more indirectly.

I ask the Leader to request the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to come to the House after Christmas to discuss the tourism product in the south east. When we examine the figures for 2013, we see that Kerry alone had 877,000 overseas visitors, while the whole south east, including Carlow, Kilkenny, south Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford, had only 846,000. Therefore, there is a definite need to promote tourism in the south east. The cycleway is a good start but the Leader should request the Minister to come to the House in the new year to consider a strategy for the south east. We have heard this is planned for the next tourism strategy but we need an opportunity to debate this matter early in the new year.