Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State back to the Chamber this afternoon. I concur with everything Senator Leyden has said and I compliment him on proposing during the Order of Business this morning that the Minister of State attend the House to discuss the issue.

I will not be repetitive. I live in the Cavan-Monaghan constituency. Many people from that part of the world use the Cuisle facility. I have been astonished by the number of phone calls I have received on this issue. They all spoke kindly and lovingly of the facility and the staff who work there. I have never come across such sentiment and emotion attached to a building and the people who work in it in my years in politics.

I know the Minister of State is a fair-minded man. Further to Senator Leyden's contribution, he might convene a meeting of all the stakeholders in order to get a feel for what people are looking for. None of the people I have spoken to wants this facility closed. They feel totally relaxed and at home when they go there. They spoke glowingly of the staff who work there. Not one person is happy with the alternative proposed by the IWA. While going to an alternative location might work well for some people, all of the people I have spoken to in my neck of the woods are bitterly disappointed and will fight tooth and nail to ensure this facility stays open. I ask the Minister of State to use his good offices to convene a meeting of all the stakeholders to try to find a sensible resolution to the issue. Perhaps a stay of execution of six months might be made to allow all the stakeholders concerned the space and time they need to work out an alternative to closing the facility.