Investment in rural Ireland 'only getting started' – Taoiseach

Rural Ireland is starting to see the fruits of Government investment according to An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar who said that Government investment in rural communities is ‘only getting started’.

An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar was in Mayo on Thursday afternoon where he visited Ballinrobe and Glencorrib before crossing the border into Headford where he attended a public meeting entitled 'The Rural Roadmap to 2030'.

During his visit to Ballinrobe he met with the Town Hall committee who recently benefited from a €4.6 million funding allocation from the Rural regeneration and Development Scheme and in Glencorrib he visited the local Sunny Days Community Childcare Centre.

Speaking to the media in Glencorrib, Mr Varadkar said he was delighted to visit the area and see for himself the work on the ground and promised to continue to invest in rural communities.

“I am glad to see people moving into the towns and villages and see the value of investment in community childcare and sporting facilities. We are only getting started. If you think about it, it is only since 2015 or 2016 when we balanced the books and we were able to start spending and investing again and it takes a few years to see the fruit of that investment. We are starting to see that now around the country and I am absolutely determined we will continue to invest in our communities, rural and urban all over the country,” he said.

An Taoiseach's visit to south Mayo was organised on the back of an invitation from local MEP, Maria Walsh to accompany her to meet with community groups and organisations across rural communities.

During his tour of Glencorrib, Mr Varadkar met with sporting and community groups who showed him plans they had to develop facilities in the village.

Speaking to The Mayo News in Glencorrib, Ms Walsh said that Glencorrib is a thriving community and young people were starting to return home from places like Australia and Canada. She said that places like Glencorrib is a 'fantastic testament that rural Ireland is alive and well' and it is the role of her and other local representatives to ensure that funding is provided to these communities.

“It is incredibly important that the Taoiseach visits places like Glencorrib and it is fantastic to meet community groups who are applying for funding.

“While it is lovely to meet people he [Leo Varadkar] also has a job to do and my job as a public rep from a European side is to make sure the Government is applying for EU funding to support community groups. We have issues with dereliction and public transport and making sure mental health supports are coming to rural Ireland and they are the type of things that he [Leo Varadkar] will be leaving with. It is important that he is not just hearing it from public reps like me but to make sure he hears it from people on the ground,” she said.