Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for the response. In regard to the last line of the response, that the strategic grant allocation 2024 will be notified to local authorities as part of general grant allocation process which will be issued in the coming weeks, I hope this particular development will be part of that. This is of interest to the Thurles municipal district council and to the public. It is to be hoped it will allow them to be prepared for the meeting with the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, tomorrow.

We are looking at Tipperary this afternoon but there is not a county in the country that does not have projects like this. We have the Slane bypass in County Meath. Once promised, they are never delivered and a sea of excuses and red tape comes between locals and their badly needed improvements to infrastructure and amenities.

Looking at the Exchequer tax intake, it seems we are experiencing some years of plenty. It would be worthwhile investing that money in projects such as this to improve the country. We never know when the years of famine might come. We have money in the Exchequer now for these large projects. It is important that when we have the money, it is spent on the communities that need it most.