Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the plan but I have a number of concerns, for example there are 270 action plans in the plan. In my view that is a plan on a plan, which does not make a plan. There is a proposal that by 2020, approximately 135,000 new jobs will be created but where will the jobs be created?

I represent rural County Carlow and was a councillor for years. What proposals in the plan will benefit Carlow? I welcome the funding under CLÁR. We did not benefit from funding under the Leader programme for three years. It was a year and a half before a penny came back into the local authorities. I felt the process was totally wrong. The Minister mentioned 4,000 projects but so many projects in Carlow have applied for Leader funding that half of them will not get it. I believe there should be more scope for funding. A great many people have come to me about their projects but I know the money is not there to fund them. The Minister must ensure that in the long term, the good projects get the funding. I think rural areas such as Carlow have been forgotten.

In the constituency where I live, Carlow-Kilkenny, the post office is a major issue. We still need to focus on post offices, schools, doctors and Garda stations. The opening of Garda stations is vital and is a crucial element of this plan. I hope we will get extra gardaí, but we need to have the presence of gardaí in a Garda station, because the loss of the local Garda in a community has a devastating effect on the elderly. People are living longer and we need to ensure they are safe in their community.

While much funding to local authorities has been cut, specific funding for roads and footpaths in towns is needed. All the services that the local authorities provided for the community have been cut. They are not in the Minister's plan and are not covered by the capital plan. Like previous speakers who spoke about broadband, it is unacceptable that we are looking at a six to seven-year wait for the roll-out of broadband in certain areas. Broadband is crucial, both for people and for jobs.

I refer to two projects in County Carlow. am sure the Minister is aware of Altamont Gardens, which is the jewel in the crown. I too like my colleagues have approached a number of Departments, only to be told there is no funding. We might get a small amount from the Leader programme if we are lucky. Altamont Gardens, Duckett's Grove and similar areas need funding because they are crucial.

The Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, Deputy Coveney, was launching a major housing development under Ireland 2040 this morning, which I welcome but there is confusion between what the two Ministers are doing for rural Ireland. I hope we can create the 135,000 jobs mentioned in the Action Plan for Rural Development but what is the plan? Is there a plan for different areas and what is the timescale? I know that 2020 has been mentioned, but I believe areas such as Carlow and Kilkenny and similar areas have been forgotten. I believe there is a two-tier recovery. It is Dublin and then the rest of rural Ireland is forgotten.

The issue for the people I represent is the quality of life. We need to give the people who are living longer the quality of life they deserve.