Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome that we have the next stage of the Galway-to-Athlone cycleway. Public information events will be announced the week after next. We had a preferred route corridor. We are now going to have an actual preferred route. This is thanks to engagement with landowners, community groups and using publicly-owned lands where possible. It will transform our communities.

I have spoken on this issue several times. It is phenomenal to see that this cycleway will be coming to the town of Ballinasloe. It will transform this route into a safe space for families to walk and cycle and just to allow them to be outdoors in a public safe space. This is what this cycleway is going to bring. It is a world-class infrastructure that will be coming into the west. These public information meetings will be happening from 27 March, that is from next week onwards.

I also highlight that the new schoolbooks programme provides free schoolbooks for schools and special schools. Funding has also been allocated to primary schools to hire an administrator to manage this programme. It is another load for primary schools to bear, but this support will be offered to them on the administrative side of things. This programme has emanated from a pilot scheme run through the DEIS when Fine Gael was previously in Government. It is great to see this programme being expanded now.