Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 18 Apr 2023

Vol. 1036 No. 5

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate

Schools Building Projects

Deputy Michael Ring

I welcome the Minister of State. I received a text today from the Minister's secretary to inform me the Minister would not be here tonight but she has agreed to meet me tomorrow. Otherwise I would not have taken the debate tonight without somebody from the Department being here. I want to put this on the record. When I meet the Minister tomorrow, I will be putting this matter to her face to face.

The reason I raise this issue tonight is that yesterday I went to meet the board of management and the principal after school and I was appalled to see the conditions under which the teachers, pupils and board of management must operate. It is really disgraceful. On 18 February 2022, a new school was announced for the Sacred Heart School, Westport. It was under the auspices of Catholic Education, an Irish Schools Trust, CEIST. We are a year on and the conditions they have to work in are unbelievable. More money has been spent on prefabs, extensions and trying to keep the school together than would have built three new schools. Officials of the Department of Education called to the school and saw what was there. They were so appalled that within a few weeks after I and other people had made strong representations, they agreed a new school would be built. Yet we are into another year. Perhaps the Minister of State will respond tonight and I thank him for coming in. What is the up-to-date position and when will we see a design team? When will we see the school being approved? When will we see work on the ground at the school?

The current enrolment of the school is 574 pupils, with 385 of them in conditions that include asbestos. There are bags under the roof to collect the asbestos that falls off. There is contaminated water. They are there with mops and buckets. There is an old engine room. The school building goes back almost 100 years. That is what the school is operating in.

To me it is not acceptable to see a Government having a surplus of almost €10 billion. We saw 58 schools taken off the list and put back onto the list again. I am putting this on the record. I made an announcement about that school on 18 February 2023 and I do not make announcements if I do not have facts. I have an email from the Department stating a new school has been approved and I want to know what is happening with that school. I want to know where we are and I do not want to be back here again because I will be raising this on the Order of Business each week until something is done about this issue.

When the Government and the Department give a commitment, there should be action. They will have seen what has happened here. We will have a court case brought by a child or a parent. There is a health and safety issue there now. We can find money for everyone around the world but we cannot build a school for 587 pupils in an advanced town such as Westport. The building has been there for I do not know how long. Extensions were added in 1968, 1978 and 1984. Further extensions were added in 2010. The girls were in an all-Ireland GAA final a few weeks ago but were beaten. They came second in an all-Ireland but they have no facilities because the prefabs are in the grounds where they used to train. That is not acceptable for the girls or for the pupils. The conditions I saw yesterday are not acceptable. I want to hear the Minister of State's reply.

Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Deputy Patrick O'Donovan)

I thank Deputy Ring for raising this Topical Issue matter which I am answering on behalf of the Minister for Education who is not here tonight. It gives us the opportunity to set out for the House the position with regard to the current status of the Sacred Heart School, Westport, County Mayo. The Sacred Heart School is a Mercy all-girls school under the trusteeship of CEIST, as Deputy Ring said. The school has an enrolment of 532 pupils.

With regard to the major project for the school included on the Department’s school building programme, the Minister can confirm that the school originally submitted an application under the Department’s additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme and following detailed technical reports carried out on the existing school accommodation and assessment of the future needs, the Department recommended that the optimum solution for the school is the provision of a new building for the Sacred Heart School to be provided on the existing site. It is proposed that the new school building will provide accommodation for 600 pupils and provision for pupils with special education needs. The accommodation will include state-of-the-art modern facilities, including science laboratories, construction-engineering-technology rooms, home economics rooms, arts and crafts rooms, a multimedia room, a design and communication graphics room, a library, general purpose area and a physical education, PE, hall with associated rooms. This is in addition to the generous suite of accommodation that will be provided to meet the needs of students with special educational needs.

New school buildings are designed to be welcoming, inclusive environments and the principles of universal design are embedded in all the Department’s technical guidance for building projects. The general design guidelines include guidance on the principles of universal access as part of a whole school design approach. A suite of such technical guidance documents is published on the Department's website. Additionally, technical guidance for new school buildings provides for high levels of energy efficiency.

As Deputy Ring will be aware, the school site presents certain technical challenges. Nevertheless the project brief for this key new school development is being advanced with a view to progressing the project to the architectural planning stage as soon as possible. Pending the delivery of the new school building, the Department has provided interim accommodation in 2022 to allow the school to vacate an existing building considered to be in poor condition. This interim accommodation includes eight mainstream classrooms, two science laboratories and two other specialist rooms. The Department has a strong track record of delivery of school building projects throughout 2022. Under Project Ireland 2040, the Department is investing more than €4 billion over the period 2021 to 2025.

Once the brief for the new school building for the Sacred Heart School in Westport is finalised, the Department will look to progress this project into the architectural planning process as soon as possible and there will be continued engagement with the school’s patron, CEIST, in this regard.

Deputy Michael Ring

I will not take up the House's time as it is late at night. I welcome the development that has taken place but I want to see further action as quickly as possible. Again, I compliment the students, principal and teachers given the conditions they are working under. They are doing a fantastic job. My daughters went to that school. I am proud of the school and I will be making sure it is brought to design stage and brought forward as quickly as possible. I will be having discussions tomorrow with the Minister and I hope we can get something done as quickly as possible.

For the information of the Minister of State, it is a listed building. I do not know why it is listed but it is no wonder this country is the way it is if that building is listed. It has been there for a couple of hundred years but I have often seen better cowsheds. It is not good enough and I want to see the facilities up and running in that school as quickly as possible. The situation is outrageous. If the Minister of State is the town, I will bring him, along with the Office of Public Works, OPW, in to see the conditions these marvellous teachers have to work in.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

I thank Deputy Ring again for raising the issue. I know he is meeting the Minister in the morning but my Department will also bring the issue to her attention due to her absence here tonight.

Tax Code

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

I am glad to get the time to raise this important issue with the Minister of State. This residential zoned land tax is having an adverse effect on farmers, especially dairy farmers, close to our towns in County Kerry, and I am sure it is happening all around the country. It is happening in places such as Killarney, Tralee, Listowel and Castleisland.

Many of these farmers have not slept since they got notification at the beginning of April that they were liable for this zoned land tax. Some of these farms are classified as strategic reserve, which means that existing residential, infill residential and proposed residential - all those categories - should be dealt with first. Under strategic reserve you are not even entitled to get planning permission. You would have to do a material contravention and the council would have to agree to it before planning could be granted.

There is plenty of other land. For example, in Killarney alone, Kerry County Council owns land in Deer Park and public land is owned by the HSE in St. Finan's Hospital, which it got from Kerry County Council in the first place. It should go back to Kerry County Council to build social housing on. We have been advocating for that for years.

This residential zoned land tax was designed and brought in to deal with speculators and would-be developers in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and other cities, but sadly there are plenty of other places to build in or around Killarney without doing this terrible deed to people and making them pay this tax. Some of them have been told it could be up to €100,000 a year. Even if their places were worth €1 million, they will not own them after a few short years. They will be totally wiped out with this tax. It reminds me of a song that goes:

The rent and taxes were so high I could not them redeem

And that's the cruel reason why I left old Skibbereen.

Is the Government going to do that to these people who have given their lives to building up enterprises? Some of these have been farming for three generations. They supplied Killarney dairy before Kerry Co-op existed. Their places have been built up to be environmentally friendly. They are producing the best milk and beef that could be expected in any part of the world. Will these active farmers be wiped out? I ask the Minister of State to go back to the Departments of Finance and Housing, Local Government and Heritage where this is coming from. It is wrong.

There are several things the Government should do if there is a shortage of houses, but it should not force anything on farmers who are actively farming. A distinction or exemption has to be made for these active farmers.

I am glad to get the opportunity to raise this very serious matter. Some of these farmers have not slept. They have had tough times trying to survive in recent years, with Brexit and every other kind of problem that has hit them nationally. I appeal to the Minister of State.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Heritage and Government, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. I thank the Deputy for the question on the application of the residential zoned land tax, RZLT, to farmlands. The Finance Act 2021 inserted Part 22A, on RZLT, into the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. The RZLT is designed to prompt residential development by landowners, including farmers, of land that is zoned for residential or mixed use, including residential purposes, and is serviced. It is important to note that to come within the scope of RZLT, farmland must be both zoned and fit for residential use and be serviced or have access to services. Farmland that is zoned for residential use but is not currently serviced is not within the scope of the tax and will only come within the scope of the tax should the land become serviced at some point in the future.

Within the Irish planning system, the county or city development plan is the principal planning strategy document for the development of a local authority area over the six-year statutory period. The development plan gives spatial expression to the physical, economic, social and environmental needs of the community in order to support and regulate new development, enhance amenities and protect the environment. Residential zonings contained within the development plan, which provide the basis for the application of the tax measure, form part of the adoption of the plan by the elected members, having regard to the need to accommodate sufficient land for housing development over the lifetime of the plan.

Land will be considered to be serviced for the purposes of the tax where it is reasonable to consider that the land has access to, or may be connected to, public infrastructure and facilities, including roads and footpaths, public lighting, foul sewer drainage, surface water drainage and public water supply necessary for dwellings to be developed on the land, and sufficient service capacity available for each development. Agricultural land that is zoned solely or primarily for residential use and is serviced meets the criteria set out within the legislation and, therefore, falls within the scope of the tax. Agricultural land that is zoned for a mixture of uses, including residential, is not in scope because farming is a trade or profession that benefits from an exemption in the legislation. These zonings are considered to reflect the housing need set out within the core strategy for the relevant local authority area. Landowners within such zonings may fall within the scope of the tax in the interests of ensuring an appropriate supply of housing on zoned lands.

Draft RZLT maps were published by each local authority on 1 November last. The purpose of draft maps was to allow landowners, including farmers, to see if their land is within the scope of the tax. If landowners see that their land is included on the draft maps and believe that it should not be, they had the opportunity to make a submission to their local authorities by 1 January seeking to have the maps updated and their land removed from them. Local authorities will have now considered the submissions received and made determinations on whether particular lands should stay on the maps or be removed. If a landowner disagrees with the determination of a council, he or she can appeal to An Bord Pleanála. If a landowner requested a rezoning of his or her land, the local authority would consider the request and, if appropriate, it would commence a variation procedure to alter the zoning of the land, as the Deputy said. The variation procedure, and the local authority’s decision on whether or not to commence one, is part of normal zoning processes.

It is acknowledged that the tax will impact on landowners. However, if the land in question is zoned for a particular purpose under a plan adopted by the local authority, and has been subject to investment by the local authority and the State in the services necessary to enable development for housing to accommodate increased population, it is intended that the land should be used for housing. This tax measure is a key pillar of the Government’s response to address the urgent need to increase housing supply.

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I have read all that he read out. Farmers have been notified by the local authorities that they are liable for the tax, even for land that is zoned as strategic residential in reserve. That is wrong. These are active farmers. It is recognised there is no demand for this development land around Killarney. There is no demand as such. In 20 years' time, if farmers have to wait that long, their land might still not be sold because we are waiting for a bypass. For some of these farmers, their only access is onto the national primary road, which is the N22 going to Killarney. We know the kind of traffic jams that are on that road. If there was to be a housing estate there, people could not get onto the road any evening because we do not even have the bypass.

I say to the Minister of State these people are contemplating going to An Bord Pleanála. They have to go but it is an expensive process. I ask the Minister of State to ensure they are not put through this. Active farmers who have been farming their lands for many years should not be put through this. They should be exempt. A distinction should be made between them and the big hoarders of land in Dublin, where the housing problem is.

We have an outland that is owned by the county council in Killarney at present to cater for the housing list, including land at St. Finan's and other lands the council has. There are other smaller pockets of land in the town of Killarney that could be built on. When all those places are built, in 20 years' time, the council can then come to these fellas by agreement, but it should not try to force them off their lands with this tax because that is what it and the Government are trying to do.

I am sorry the Minister is not here to listen to me make the case. He is wrong in going down this road. He is hurting people. I was brought up to understand that you should never try to put one person or one community up by putting others down. That is very wrong. I ask the Minister of State to ensure that active farmers are exempted from this vacant land tax.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

I thank the Deputy. I know about the issues he raised and I see he feels very strongly about them. The matter has been raised previously in the House and the Tánaiste has responded directly specifically regarding, as the Deputy said, the tiers for different zoning matrices within towns. I will ask the Minister to contact him directly to discuss the specifics he raised as I am not familiar with them and am not in that Department. I will ask the Minister to come back directly to the Deputy.

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

I thank the Minister of State.

Cancer Services

Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan

It is now ten minutes past midnight and here we are. I appreciate the Minister of State taking this matter.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

Family friendly.

Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan

Family friendly is right. We have all got homes to go to. I appreciate that the Minister of State is here. I am disappointed that none of the health Ministers are here to listen to my plea. This is the seventh effort I have made to get this matter taken. Now that it is finally being taken and the Minister of State is here to take it, despite the fact it is 12.10 a.m., I have decided that we should press ahead and get it on the record.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

We will call it early morning instead of late evening.

Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan

Exactly. We are into the following day. I appreciate the Minister of State sticking around to take this matter. It relates to Cancer Connect, which is an extraordinary cancer support service in Cork, west Cork and extending into County Kerry. It offers a transport service for people availing of chemotherapy and radiotherapy services in Cork University Hospital, CUH, and Cork city. At the time I got these statistics together in June last year, 106 passengers per week were being brought to Cork city for cancer treatment by Cancer Connect, which is extraordinary. This was brought about by 300 volunteer drivers who do not take a penny to bring cancer sufferers to Cork city for their treatment. Salaries are involved for administration and management staff involved in delivering the service, but this is all paid for primarily by fundraising. An extraordinary fundraising effort is put in to get the finances together for this service.

I raised this issue with then Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, in June. He felt it could perhaps be funded through the national cancer strategy.

On that note, I contacted the then CEO of community healthcare organisation, CHO, 4, who confirmed he had made an application to the HSE service plan for specific funding for Cancer Connect.

We are now into April. From what I gather, the service plan has been announced, but we are looking for detail within it. Has Cancer Connect been successful in acquiring the much-needed funding? It is looking for a small sum, considering the service it provides, of about €100,000 to maintain the extraordinary services it provides for cancer sufferers in Cork and Kerry. I cannot overstate the importance of the service. Many would not have been able to avail of or get to their cancer treatment if it had not been for Cancer Connect. The support it has given to families is incredible. Families who had few or no options for transport for their cancer treatment have been able to avail of this 100% free service. We need to protect it and fund it, and the State needs to take a role in doing that. I hope the Minister of State will have some detail on what is contained within the service plan and on whether Cancer Connect has the funding it needs to maintain the service.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue, to which I am responding on behalf of the Minister for Health. Cancer Connect was set up in 2011 and provides a free transport service for people attending Cork hospitals for cancer-related appointments, including radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The driving is done entirely by volunteers who give their time to the valuable service. Fundraising is integral to the continued service provided by Cancer Connect and other such support services and the Minister is advised the organisation has also received financial support from the HSE.

In 2022, the HSE's national cancer control programme, NCCP, provided programme-level funding to Cancer Connect in order that it could continue to provide transport for people receiving cancer treatment throughout the area served in County Cork. I understand Cancer Connect expanded its service beyond west Cork in response to the increase in the number of cancer patients attending Cork hospitals. The organisation is now providing a service in north-east Cork while examining other expansion options including volunteer driver recruitment.

The Government recognises the need for patients to have good access to, and support with travel for, cancer treatment. Two services administered by the Irish Cancer Society offer financial or transport supports towards travel for cancer treatment. The first of these services is the travel-to-care scheme, a limited transport assistance fund funded by the NCCP at a cost of a €350,000. This is available to patients travelling to a designated cancer centre, an approved centre or an approved children's hospital and will cover part of the associated costs.

The second scheme available is the volunteer driver service. Similar to that provided by Cancer Connect, this is a volunteer-delivered transport service wherein patients are driven to and from treatment in designated partner hospitals and centres. Drivers are interviewed, trained and Garda vetted and must attend annual support supervision sessions run by the Irish Cancer Society. The volunteer driver service is free to the patient, with all costs paid by the Irish Cancer Society, and applications can be made through a healthcare professional in a partnered hospital, who will then discuss the suitability of the service. Once referred, the patient must book appointments with the Irish Cancer Society. I am advised the Irish Cancer Society is happy to receive requests outside the guidelines on exceptional bases. The Minister welcomes the opportunity to discuss funding for cancer support services and centres and encourages the Cancer Connect organisation in Cork to engage with the HSE on any funding applications or concerns it has.

Cancer support services throughout Ireland, whether they provide assistance with travel or other supports to people living with and beyond cancer, are invaluable to those they support. The Government recognises the valuable work done by the staff and volunteers of cancer support centres throughout the country.

Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan

I thank the Minister of State for the response but, as he will appreciate, it did not quite answer the question I had. To help in this exercise, he might take note of my comments, and pass on a message to the Minister for Health, regarding my specific question. The then CEO of CHO 4 made an application to the HSE for specific funding for the running of the Cancer Connect service. We were told to await the publication of the service plan. My understanding is the service plan has been published but the detail within it has not yet been released. I ask that a message be conveyed to the Minister with a view to getting detail on the service plan and on whether Cancer Connect was successful under it.

A related service, ARC Cancer Support House in Cork, provides emotional and educational support, therapies, breast cancer services, counselling and group exercises. There is a similar story there, where an exceptional cancer support service with a base in Cork city and also in Bantry constantly has to fundraise to maintain the service. It is looking for an ongoing State contribution in order that it can keep the service going. I ask that a question be put to the interim CEO, who will be in place for the next couple of months, regarding the detail of the service plan and whether Cancer Connect and ARC house are covered.

Deputy Patrick O'Donovan

I thank the Deputy. My initial response would have been a good one if the question had been about the Irish Cancer Society, which, of course, it was not. It related to a totally different matter, but this is not the first time I have been asked to come to the Chamber and read out a prepared statement relating to something for which I am not responsible that is not related to an issue a Deputy has raised.

The issue the Deputy raised is one that is close to my heart. I know people, including family members, who have availed of volunteer drivers and used cancer support services. The question he raised is not a difficult one to answer, and while I do not have the answer for it, we will try to get one for him. The issue cuts to the heart of a lot of rural communities, especially where they are isolated from acute hospitals. In many cases, people depend on neighbours or family members to drive them to hospital appointments, and in the absence of a family member, a volunteer who can serve the likes of Cancer Connect, the Irish Cancer Society or whatever is invaluable.

I will ask the Minister for Health or a Minister of State to revert to the Deputy on the matter. It relates to a service a lot of people in this House will have been touched by. While we will not have gone out seeking to be touched by it, we know the value of it.

Road Projects

Deputy Matt Carthy

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, for his attendance and the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for her indulgence. I thank also the staff of the Houses for working so late and facilitating the debate. I hope the Minister of State will be able to allay the conclusion many have come to, namely, that the Government has a disgraceful attitude to regional transport links, not least as they pertain to the Border region.

County Monaghan has incredibly limited public transport availability. There is no rail network in the region and bus services are extremely restricted. As such, our local economy requires a fit-for-purpose road network. The N2, alongside the A5, has been considered in several Government documents and plans to be a crucial artery and economic driver for both the central-Border and north-western regions. The road has been part of several peace process negotiations. The Irish and British Governments and political parties have all agreed on the principle that this road network is essential for the delivery of a peace dividend to regions and communities that were significantly impacted by partition and conflict over the course of the past century. To much fanfare from Government party representatives, the project was highlighted as priority infrastructure in the so-called national development plan.

Unilaterally, however, the funding for the next phase of the section from Clontibret to the Border was withdrawn in 2022. Representatives of Transport Infrastructure Ireland confirmed to me at a meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts that that withdrawal would have to be revisited if there were a direction from the Government. Indeed, other road projects farther south that were also initially excluded in the 2022 programme were subsequently allocated the necessary funding to proceed to the next stage. It seems, however, that nobody in the Government was willing to make a similar case for the N2. This year again, fanfare from Government representatives told us the scheme from Clontibret to the Border had been allocated funding, but we soon learned the allocation towards this section is dependent on EU-matched funding.

I am unaware of any other national road funding being so dependent on outside aid. It appears the Government representatives from our region have been found wanting again as the Department of Transport plays political games with our region. The Ardee to Castleblaney section of the road has now also been effectively stalled. The €600 million allocation for this year will only cover previous costs and will not allow the project to proceed to the next stage. The development of the N2 and of the A5 in the North needs to proceed as a matter of urgency. Without it, County Monaghan and the wider region will not be able to reach its economic potential. It is entirely unfair that landowners' land is effectively frozen in perpetuity while progress on the road is painstakingly slow due to Government decisions. There are serious traffic concerns arising from the ongoing foot-dragging and stalling. I put on the record my strong commendation of the members of Monaghan County Council, who are united in calling for the funding allocation for the N2 to be revisited. We also need political unity from local and Oireachtas representatives in this region. Primarily, we need Government to change the disgraceful attitude that has been displayed towards this region and to deliver the necessary funding to allow these two schemes on this critical piece of infrastructure for the region to proceed to the next stages.

Minister of State at the Department of Transport (Deputy Jack Chambers)

The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding in relation to the national roads programme, NRP. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2015, and in line with the national development plan, NDP, the planning, design, improvement and upgrading of individual national roads is a matter for TII, in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. TII ultimately delivers the national roads programme in line with Project Ireland 2040, the national planning framework, NPF, and the NDP.

Four projects on the N2 have been identified in the national development plan, which are really important for regional connectivity as the Deputy has outlined, namely, the N2 Clontibret to the Border, N2 Ardee to Castleblaney, N2 Slane bypass and N2 Rath roundabout to Kilmoon Cross projects. TII is working to progress these schemes through planning, design and construction. Approximately €491 million of Exchequer capital funding has been provided for national roads through TII to local authorities in 2023.

These allocations were announced by the Department of Transport and TII on 16 February 2023. In 2023, funding for new projects on the N2 comprises the Clontibret to the Border project, which has been allocated €2.5 million that is contingent on a successful application for funding under the connecting Europe framework. Moreover, the N2 Ardee to Castleblaney project has received €600,000, the N2 Slane bypass has received €350,000 and the N2 Rath roundabout to Kilmoon Cross project has received €750,000.

The Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for capital spending on new national roads projects from 2021 to 2030 as part of the NDP. This funding will enable improved regional accessibility across the country, as well as compact growth which are key national strategic outcomes. The funding will provide for the development of numerous national road projects, including the completion of projects which are already at construction stage and those close to it, as well as the development of a number of others. As the greater portion of this funding is available as we progress through the decade, this means there may be constraints in the available funding in particular years. However, most national road projects for the NDP will continue to be progressed in 2023, including the N2.

A major priority in the national development plan, in line with the Department's investment, is to ensure we have quality and safety on the road network. The national development plan receives an Exchequer allocation of approximately €2.9 billion for the protection and renewal of existing roads over the ten-year period to 2030 allocated evenly across the decade. I acknowledge what the Deputy has set out and I look forward to engaging on the issue. I am aware that Senator Gallagher and others, including the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Humphreys, also want to see progress on these projects. Many members of Monaghan County Council have articulated the necessity to see continued progress on many of the projects related to the N2. I will be engaging with them in my role within Government and I will reflect what the Deputy has set out today. The Government is committed to regional connectivity and developing this infrastructure, but doing so within the envelope.

Deputy Matt Carthy

The problem is that funding was taken out of the budget and taken away from projects that are included in the national development plan and allocated to projects that are not mentioned at all in that plan. We need to have clarity in this regard. The Minister's answer suggests this is all TII decision-making. However, TII told us quite clearly and has stated to a number of Dáil committees that it will be directed by the Government. However, the Minister of State should not take my word, or even the word of the elected representatives, for it. We had a very constructive meeting with the officials from Monaghan County Council, who have no political axe to grind. All they want to see is the development of our county. The Minister mentioned the funding allocation for the Ardee to Castleblaney road scheme. The council officials have told us categorically that the €600,000 funding received in 2023 is to meet current project commitments. Funding is not sufficient to allow design work to continue. Consultant engineers have been asked to stop work. Regarding the implications of that, they noted the road already has a higher than average collision history and that as traffic volumes continue to grow, collision frequency and severity is likely to increase. They noted failure to progress the project may impact the long-term growth and development of the north-west region. Moreover, extended delays will impact on land and property owners and restrict development along the corridors. Both these schemes have effectively been stalled. The Minister of State has spoken about progressing these roads. However, over the past two years there has been regression. We have been told by the experts in Monaghan County Council that if an extended delay is experienced, the cost will increase and surveys, investigations and design work will need to be repeated at further additional cost. This has already happened with the Clontibret to the Border road scheme. The original road was proposed in the 1990s. It was suspended in the mid-2000s and recommenced in 2008. It was suspended again in 2012 and since 2017, there has been a 400 m wide corridor that effectively has been sterilised. We need an absolute commitment from the Minister of State that he will ensure that the disgraceful attitude that has been shown towards these schemes is reversed and that we will see progress on these roads this year.

Deputy Jack Chambers

The roads outlined in the national development plan are an absolute priority. I look forward to engaging with the officials from Monaghan County Council and with the local councillors. I accept the Deputy's bona fides in trying to advance this on behalf of his community for reasons of economic development. The road safety matters he has outlined are also very important to the people of Monaghan and the people who transit through the county as well. As I have said, the allocations have been made for 2023. As part of the ongoing national development plan it is important that we see progress across the projects that are outlined in the plan. I reiterate I will be engaging with officials in Monaghan County Council and the elected public representatives on this issue and will reflect the feedback the Deputy has given to the House as part of the debate relating to this matter.

Cuireadh an Dáil ar athló ar 12.29 a.m. go dtí 9.12 a.m., Dé Céadaoin, an 19 Aibreán 2023.

The Dáil adjourned at 12.29 a.m. until 9.12 a.m. on Wednesday, 19 April 2023.