Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome the news that the Taoiseach has appointed the former Senator, Mr. Jim D'Arcy, as a special adviser on Northern Ireland, the Border and Brexit. It is a welcome appointment as far as the people in the communities I represent are concerned because for more than four decades the Border region, including counties Cavan, Monaghan, Leitrim, Donegal and Louth, and the Six Counties, which are currently governed by the UK, have suffered. This appointment is welcome at a time we are facing uncertainty in respect of Brexit. Jim D'Arcy was born and reared and has lived all his life on the Border in County Louth and he is well aware of the difficulties that communities on both sides of the Border experience on a daily basis. I also welcome the fact that there have been calls from both sides of the House for a debate on the future of Europe and our part in that. IarSheanadóir D'Arcy could feed well into that debate.One particular area that I would like Mr. D'Arcy to cover in his portfolio or brief is a call on the European community to give a special structural fund grant to upgrade infrastructure, which has suffered on both sides of the Border for decades. A special fund would allow us to upgrade our infrastructure in order to cope with the potential damage that Brexit will do to our agricultural community. I very much welcome the fact that the Taoiseach has appointed former Senator, Mr. Jim D'Arcy.

Finally, I echo the call for regulation to be introduced to ban sulky racing on public roads by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment. Councillor Andrew McGuinness has championed a ban for some time and he has been in communication with all of his Fianna Fáil colleagues in this House. I welcome any progress that can be made in that regard.