Fine Gael’s general election candidate for Galway East wants the Government to allocate windfall proceeds to fund transport investment across the West of Ireland.
Councillor Clodagh Higgins was responding to plans mooted by the Fine Gael-Fianna Fáil-Green Party coalition to develop a framework on how to deal with extra Exchequer income, including the Apple tax “windfall” and proceeds from the sale of AIB shares.
Higgins, a Galway city councillor, says she welcomes the recent Budget allocation of €988 million to renew Ireland's road system, including an additional €50 million for regional and local roads, but she called on Fine Gael’s Minister for Public Expenditure and the National Development Plan, Pascal Donohoe TD, to allocate a “fair share” of the Apple money for transport infrastructure.
“I hosted Paschal on a visit to Galway East. While I thanked him for this substantial investment, I also took the opportunity to highlight the need for more investment in the road network in County Galway.
“We need investment to deal with increased traffic loads on roads such as the N84 Headford Road. We need investment to alleviate traffic congestion in and around towns like Loughrea, and we need investment to tackle road safety blackspots in the county.”
Higgins pointed out that the ‘Regional Infrastructural Tracker’ issued by the Northern and Western Regional Assembly (NWRA ) in July found that the west of Ireland has the the 17th worst transport infrastructure out of 235 regions across Europe
“The West is playing catch-up when it comes to transport infrastructure. I believe there is now a real opportunity for the West to benefit from increased capital investment on foot of the Apple tax windfall and AIB share proceeds.
“The Government is developing a new framework on windfall proceeds to guide how these moneys are spent. I want to the see the West getting its fair share,” she said.
