Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

At this stage, the Leader is used to Senators - in some cases, very reasonably - criticising Government agencies or Government Departments. On this occasion, I am happy to be doing the opposite.I want to pay tribute, through the Leader, to Mr. Martin Shanahan, the chief executive officer of IDA Ireland, and then I want to add a request. I pay tribute to Mr. Shanahan for being proactive in writing to 1,200 employers stating that we are potentially now the only English-speaking gateway to the EU, an excellent location for inward investment and an attractive option for those firms. I am delighted he did it and I commend him on it. Given the recent unfortunate events and as, hopefully, more firms locate in Ireland, I would like the Leader, through the Minister, to impress on Mr. Shanahan the need for a good regional spread. Perhaps a debate in the House would be helpful. Given the housing crisis in Dublin, the price of accommodation along the east coast and all that goes with that, and the improved infrastructure on a number of levels throughout the country, it is imperative that we do what Mr. Shanahan is doing and try to attract new inward investment. We wish him luck with the initiative, which needs to be stepped up. However, the inward investment must be spread regionally. I would like to see places such as Cavan-Monaghan and others throughout the country getting a fair spread of the new potential employment that can arise from inward investment. I know that the Leader, as a Munster man, will appreciate the importance of spreading this around. From a spatial perspective, we do not want job creation in just the one area.