“It’s an attack on rural Ireland, in particular the way of life here in the west, and if its proposals are implemented then we might as well all get up and live elsewhere” said Mayo Fine Gael TD, John O’Mahony on the recommendations published yesterday by An Bord Snip.
“Every aspect of life here will be devastated. From agriculture right through to aviation, everything has been hit and people will suffer. Ireland West Airport Knock, The Western Rail Corridor will suffer, our farmers will be expected to endure an even harsher way of life, and our children will be expected to go to schools where class sizes will increase, and the Western Development Commission, one of the few agencies that campaigns solely for investment in the region, will be subsumed into Enterprise Ireland.”
The deputy said: “What’s amazing about this report is the lack of a plan. What are we supposed to do about the thousands of people that are losing their jobs every week? There’s nothing in this report for them, other than the cutbacks suggested for social welfare recipients. What’s really galling is the admission by the authors of the report that the Government mismanaged the economy in the good years. Yet, everyone has to suffer for this mismanagement while the people who have us where we are today don’t even have the common decency to apologise for their actions,” he said.
