Jerry Buttimer

I thank Deputy O'Flynn for this very important question, and for his commitment to the people of Mallow. I look forward to working with him because we both share a desire to see the town of Mallow continue to flourish and develop. As he is aware, the National Transport Authority's Local Link and rural transport programme is, in the case of Cork, managed and administered in Cork by the Local Link o…

I look forward to working further with the Deputy to alleviate the traffic gridlock.

I look forward to coming to visit Mallow. Deputy Colm Burke, who is sitting behind me, has also asked me to go there. I look forward to meeting with Deputy O'Flynn in Mallow. I visited Mallow recently.

Perhaps the Deputy was not there. There is an issue in the centre of Mallow and going from A to B. There is traffic gridlock going to the roundabout heading towards the Killarney Road, coming from Fermoy, which requires a lot of patience and persistence by motorists and cyclists alike. However, let us look at what the Government has done in the town of Mallow in terms of the frequency of the rail …

Perhaps he can bring me to the particular spots where he thinks there should be bus stops as well.

The line Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, and I have €92 million more for roads this year and I hope we will have more next year in the budget. There is a real need for this funding. Deputy Colm Burke has a question on the Cork to Limerick motorway. We need that motorway. All of us who travel that road know that is the case from an economic point of view …

I look forward to working with all Members. Deputy O'Flynn referred to other Members of the House. We should bring them on a journey.

I thank the Deputy for the question and his ongoing advocacy on the need for the N20-M20 Cork-Limerick motorway. He and I share an urgent need to have this road completed. I wish he and I were not in the House again discussing this. It is a project of gargantuan importance. As Members will know, it involves 80 km of refurbishment and, at its core, the project will address many of the road safety …

I agree with Deputy Burke that, despite the challenges outlined, the growth necessitates that this road be expedited. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, and I in the Department of Transport, working with An Taoiseach and other members of Government, will do our damnedest to expedite the project delivery for this road. I fully concur with Deputy Burke. I travel …

On the Ryder Cup, I congratulate the European team, including Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry. Deputy Burke is right. We are committed to the Adare piece, but the Cork to Limerick part is equally important. I am confident that-----

I am not sure we will get there for the Ryder Cup, but it needs to be-----

Gabh mo leithscéal.

I thank Deputy Lawless for raising the importance of rail and bus connectivity in County Mayo. As Minister of State at the Department with responsibility for rural transport, I am delighted to say we have seen considerable investment in services throughout the country under the Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan. In County Mayo especially, funding has gone up by 56% over the past two years. We…

Can the Deputy tell us which tractors?

I want to get the details of the tractor the Deputy is referring to because that would be a fair old tractor no matter where you are coming from. Without being flippant, the Deputy is right. The Connecting Ireland rural mobility plan is important. As he knows, the Government is very much committed to rural Ireland. This year's all-island strategic rail review made 33 strategic recommendations, whi…

I thank Deputy Lawless and remind him that the Government has invested €84 million in the rural transport programme. Some €116 million has been allocated to regular rural services. In addition, €40 million has been allocated to new services including new town services under Connecting Ireland and BusConnects. There has been success in rural transport. Some 70% of those living outside our cities wi…

I thank the Members of the House for participating in these wonderful statements on our national social enterprise policy. I pay tribute to those involved in social enterprises across our country. As Minister of State at the Department of community development, I am very conscious of the work that is being done. I am delighted to be here today to speak on this important policy, which was launched …

I thank Members for their contributions. Deputy Nolan is right that we must support social enterprises. That is the fundamental point and it is what I will do as Minister of State. Deputy Donnelly spoke about Rethink Ireland. It was formerly Social Innovation Fund Ireland, SIFI, which was established by the then Government in 2012 to set up a €100 million fund in collaboration with philanthropist…

The Deputy was well able to use social media to support the all-Ireland semi-finalists last week.

I begin by thanking the Minister, Deputy Foley, for her leadership and stewardship of the Department. Her last remarks clarify her position in terms of her commitment to equality. I thank her for that. I also pay tribute to the former Minister, Deputy Roderic O'Gorman, who is in the House this afternoon, for his leadership and courage as a Minister, but also for going to Budapest Pride. He sent a …

I thank the Deputy for her question. Community wealth building is, indeed, a long-standing commitment of the Deputy and her party. As she knows well, the concept refers to a range of approaches to local economic development. While the Department under the Minister, Deputy Calleary, and me does not have a dedicated community wealth building fund as such, our wide range of policies and funding progr…

I thank the Deputy. If we look at the example and model we have here in SICAP, which is our country’s primary social inclusion intervention, it supports communities. I am well aware of Cleveland and Preston. I am not aware of the Ayrshire model and would be happy to discuss that further. I have looked at Cleveland’s model in particular. To give the House an example, €48.9 million in funding was i…

As the Deputy knows, the Department is progressing a number of initiatives and policies that provide both urban and rural regeneration through an integrated strategic way of delivering supports, programme schemes and co-ordinating measures to address social disadvantage and imbalance in our communities or, in some cases, a lack of opportunity. I gave the example of the national policy on social en…

I thank the Deputy for his continuing support for our national library programme. When we served together in the Seanad, he was a strong advocate for library services. The Minister, Deputy Calleary, and I, as Minister of State with responsibility for libraries, are investing in our library services. They are a key priority for both of us and for the Department and that is reflected in the public l…

I look forward to visiting the library with Deputy Wall. Just to assure him, the project has received funding of €3 million under the capital programme to support what is a very ambitious and exciting plan for the county library in Newbridge, including archives and a cultural centre. The project will be superb in terms of its size and scale. It will be 2,378 sq. m. It will be four times larger tha…