I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Doyle, for coming in to take the Adjournment debate but I am disappointed the Taoiseach is not present in view of the fact that I am raising his reported comments at a meeting in the Mount Errigal Hotel in Donegal on 27 October 1995. I am very concerned about his comments as reported and recorded at the meeting of the North West Regional Cross-Border Group.
The Taoiseach made the following three points: first, that the National Roads Authority on both sides of the Border would co-operate — and nobody has any difficulty with that — but it was disappointing that he did not refer to the county and regional roads which are causing the problem in Border areas. Second, he said that the drawing down of maximum European funding was not a priority as against keeping spending under control. Nobody more than I would be calling on the Government to keep spending under control but for the Taoiseach to suggest that to do so we cannot draw down the maximum amount of European funding is a false sense of economy. I never heard a Government Minister say that before and I was surprised at him. Third, he said to increase funding to Border areas it would have to be redirected from elsewhere and that this could not be done in view of the commitment to contain spending within a 2 per cent increase. That raises serious and fundamental questions, the most important being this Government's commitment to the Border region. I never had much faith in this Government because for the first time there is no Minister or Minister of State from a Border constituency.
No payments were made under the INTERREG programme in 1994 but payments will be made in 1995. If you take out the INTERREG, which is additional funding provided by the European Union specifically for Border regions, the allocation for county and regional roads is reduced which is indicative of the lack of commitment to Border areas. Out of the 5,000 jobs created by overseas industry in this country, 14 were created in one county of my constituency and nine in the other and we have not yet seen the benefits from the ceasefire.
The European Union, the United States and the people who subscribe to the international fund for Ireland all recognise the problems in the Border area. It is recognised that all frontier areas have problems but things are even more difficult in the Border area because of the 25 years of violence although the Government obviously does not recognise the problems. I appeal to the Government not to offer pious platitudes but to give us our entitlement, the allocation of money that has been provided by the taxpayers of the European Union as well as the additional funding to which we are entitled. We will then get on with the job in the Border region.
The Taoiseach's reported comments show a complete lack of regard for the Border region. To date we have not seen anything from this Government. I would like Deputy Doyle to convey to the Taoiseach the disappointment, not just of myself but of all other Deputies and Senators in the Border area, at the lack of interest shown by the Government and the depression caused by the comments attributed to him.
