Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Question 70: To ask the Minister for Transport and the Marine if he will confirm that his Department has received a submission from Mayo County Council in respect of funding relating to the R312 road in County Mayo; and the status of that submission. [22152/07]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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The improvement of non-national roads in County Mayo is a matter for Mayo County Council to be funded from its own resources supplemented by State grants. The selection and prioritisation of projects to be financed from these grants is also a matter for the Council.

Mayo County Council wrote to my Department, on 8 February 2007, requesting funding for the upgrading of the R312 Castlebar-Belmullet Road under the New Strategic Non-National Roads stream of grants. The Council was informed that all non-national road grants for 2007 had been fully allocated and no funds were available from which further grant allocations could be made.

However, the Council was informed that the design stage of the project would be considered for funding in 2008, having regard, inter alia, to the overall funding available in 2008 for non-national roads and the competing demands from other local authorities.

In order to aid its consideration of the Council's proposal, my Department sought further details on the proposed scheme, including confirmation of the proposed works, a draft expenditure profile to include details of the Council's proposed own resources expenditure on the scheme and possible third party contributions. The requested information is still awaited from the Council.