Seán Kyne (Fine Gael)

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, an Teachta Cummins. The Minister of State is welcome. First, I thank the Cathaoirleach’s office for choosing this Commencement matter. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, for coming in. It is good to see the Minister of State with responsibility for the topic present.

I am raising this Commencement matter regarding funding for Galway City Council. In doing so, I am conscious of the continuous efforts being made by my colleagues on Galway City Council, including Councillors Frank Fahy, Eddie Hoare, Clodagh Higgins and Shane Forde, three of whom are former mayors of the city. We have had meetings and regular briefings with the management team of Galway City Council and with this year’s mayor, Councillor Mike Cubbard, as well as with the previous mayor, Councillor Peter Keane, where we met the manager. We have a new CEO, Mr. Leonard Cleary, who has come in since the baseline funding was decided by the Government a number of years ago.

Galway city is short-changed by being ranked as a tier 5 authority for funding. By being ranked alongside the smaller rural counties with a low population, Galway city is denied the funding it requires and deserves as a regional capital. Galway city’s population stands at 90,000 in 2025. That is not the full picture, however. During the autumn, winter and spring, some 30,000 students attend its two universities and in summer, it welcomes some two million tourists. It could be argued that there is a daily population of approximately 130,000 when workers coming into the city from the outskirts are taken into account as well.

Galway is a regional capital. It provides all the services of a regional capital to its hinterland of more than half a million citizens. Its four hospitals cater for thousands of patients weekly and its colleges educate each successive generation, yet it is funded as if it is the smallest of local authorities. Galway is a world hub for the medical device industry, with thousands of jobs and cutting-edge innovation. It is a tech hub with amazing new start-ups and spin-outs from our universities, but it is funded with no recognition of the achievements and needs this involves.

There is a huge need for investment in Galway city. We need transport infrastructure of all types to relieve the traffic gridlock experienced daily. We need public and private housing and the services that surround those provisions. We need all the other services involved in building sustainable communities, such as playgrounds, community centres, sports facilities, walking and cycling routes and everything that is needed to create a sustainable living city, yet we are funded at the lowest level.

Teastaíonn tuilleadh maoinithe do Chomhairle Cathrach na Gaillimhe. Tá an struchtúr atá leagtha amach ag an Roinn tithíochta agus rialtais áitiúil, ina bhfuil an comhairle cathrach i sraith 5, mífhéaráilte. Iarraim ar an Roinn Comhairle Cathrach na Gaillimhe a athrú go sraith 4. Tá an comhairle cathrach sa ghrúpa céanna le comhairlí beaga faoin tuath. Níl sé seo ceart do phríomhchathair an iarthair a bhfuil daonra de 90,000 aici, chomh maith le 30,000 mac léinn sa bhreis ag freastal ar an dhá ollscoil gach lá. Freisin, tá ceithre ospidéal sa chathair a fhreastalaíonn ar an gcathair, contae agus réigiún. Mar sin, tá a lán daoine ag úsáid seirbhísí sa chathair chuile lá.

Galway is the regional capital and it is not being funded as such. Its services cater not only for the environs of a relatively small, designated city but also for the greater region, both in the county and throughout Connacht. That needs to be reflected in the baseline funding it receives. Changes were made and agreed to a number of years ago and I appreciate that. That decision predates the present CEO, however, who has indicated that, on a population basis in particular, it reflects just the population of the city rather than the population it caters for on a daily basis, which includes some of the county and the region. That is the main issue that needs to be taken into account. I am not trying to take from any other local authority. Rather, I seek to ensure Galway city gets what it deserves in the context of what it does for the area and region.