Cathal Byrne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. I very much welcome the engagement and his commitment to this idea of having a targeted, ring-fenced, designated fund for smaller rural villages to allow them to get access to funding from the active travel scheme for footpaths. We saw during Covid and more recently the great benefits that footpaths in these areas can have. They are truly transformative. The Minister of State is correct that it is my experience that, unfortunately for these smaller villages, they simply have not been able to get access to the levels of funding that should be there. It is important that there be a specifically designated fund to allow that to happen.