Lorraine Clifford Lee (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Perhaps one of the reasons €30 million is coming from the transport budget is that the Minister's focus is elsewhere.We will be back debating the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill following the Order of Business. He is concerning himself with judicial appointments and the reopening of Garda stations and taking his eye off the ball. A total of 30% of this year's overrun must be borne by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. What transport infrastructure project will bear the brunt of this? Will BusConnects be rolled out? Will we have the greenways that have been promised? What about the carriages for the northern commuter line? I face into packed carriages when I get on the train in the morning in Donabate, as do all my constituents. Will we see this resolved? We need the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to come to the House. Will this create a precedent for following years? We know the gap will have to be plugged in the coming years. Will the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport have to plug the gap? I could go on and on about the failings of the Minister in that Department. This is an important issue, particularly in north County Dublin, which has the fastest growing population in the country and where the transport infrastructure that does not cater for the needs of the people living there currently or who will live there in future. The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport must plug the gap caused by the Department of Health. The Ministers for Health and Transport, Tourism and Sport need to come to the Chamber to answer our pressing questions on this.