Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Before I start, I wish to compliment the Cathaoirleach on his contribution to the joint sitting of the Houses yesterday. I also compliment the others who contributed. It was a moving day and our hearts go out to the poor people of Ukraine. Bualadh bos duit.

The serious issue of the continuous underfunding of roads over the past decade has been raised on an almost monthly basis by councillors in Monaghan, Cavan and many other parts of rural Ireland. In Monaghan, Councillors P.J. O'Hanlon and Seamus Coyle in particular have consistently raised the issue of the underfunding of local and regional roads.

Unfortunately, we in County Monaghan do not have any multinational, so it has been down to the good people of the county to create their own employment through indigenous enterprises in agriculture, including agrifood, and engineering. It is a unique situation, given the number of small enterprises that are located up boreens and small local roads that are connected to regional roads. These local and regional roads are essential so that businesses can get their goods to the marketplace.

Like many other counties, Monaghan and Cavan are unique in the large proportion of their populations living in rural areas. Many people, including parents taking their kids to school in the morning and people travelling to and from work, are travelling on substandard roads. While those roads have received funding, the amount of which has increased in recent years, that funding is not adequate to address the roads' condition. Monaghan has had no rail service since 1958, so the road network is the only show in town for people who have to get to and from their workplaces and for their social needs.

While I welcome the increased allocations, we will get fewer kilometres of road done throughout Ireland because inflation in the cost of materials is on the rise. The Government needs to take this point into consideration.

These small enterprises are dependent on the road network to get their goods and supplies to and from the marketplace. The road network is also critical for communities in getting from A to B. In many cases, roads are the only show in town. There is no doubt that increased funding is a must. We have been calling for it for years. Funding was cut in previous years, and while I am glad that the allocations have increased recently, much more needs to be done.

I welcome the Government's announcement on the local improvement scheme, LIS, two days ago. A total of €11 million has been allocated across the country, but it is inadequate to address the situation at hand. For example, County Monaghan will receive €351,000 while Cavan will receive €371,000. In Monaghan, there is a list of 131 lanes to be done. Some of them have been on what's called an historical list since 2005. While we are grateful for the €351,000, it will only do approximately five lanes. There are 13 people on the historical list who will be waiting the guts of 20 years to get their lanes done. That is not good enough. I welcome the funding, but this is another illustration of how more needs to be done. For rural Ireland, there is no other show in town. We have no rail or Luas. We need the local road network to get by.