Frank Feighan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive response and note again that the Shannon-Erne waterway is a truly wonderful asset which has seen many spin-offs.As the Minister of State noted, one of them is the Shannon-Erne blueway which features 70 km of paddling trails from Leitrim village to Belturbet. The trail is complemented by more than 30 km of beautiful walking and cycling trails around the town of Ballinamore. Needless to say in the context of this discussion, other towns such as Keshcarrigan, Ballinamore and Newtowngore need to have the greatest possible access to tourists who use the Shannon-Erne canal system in order that they can avail of the benefits of tourism.

I live in Boyle which is close to Lough Key forest park and residents of the town also have access to the River Shannon. We can do much more with this natural resource, especially given that the weather changes little throughout the year. We should further develop this cross-Border project that has provided great joy for many people on the island and further afield since 1994 and before the Good Friday Agreement was signed.