Vol. 407 No. 9
30 Mr. Connor asked the Minister for the Environment if he will outline his views on whether the targeting of EC structural funds on the roads in the State fails to meet the underlying principle of community cohesion and solidarity in the setting up of this fund in that the most underdeveloped and less favoured regions of this country get least from the programme.
The road investment measures outlined in the Operational Programme on Peripherality have first and foremost to be seen in the context that Ireland is regarded as a single region for the purposes of the EC Structural Funds. The primary objective of that investment is to reduce the impact of Ireland's peripheral location by cutting the transport cost differential between this country and its Community partners. To achieve that objective, it is necessary to concentrate investment on priority routes and on projects which would give the best return in terms of reducing the adverse effects on the Irish economy of our peripheral location.
Notwithstanding this concentration of resources, the operational programme provides for substantial road investment in each of the sub-regions. It is also important to appreciate that investment in priority routes such as the N1, N4, and N7 not only benefits the areas in which the investment takes place, but also has a substantial impact on other areas served by those routes in terms of shorter travel times and improved access to major ports and airports and the main domestic markets.
