Demands for a targeted package of investment in the west of Ireland will be made to the Minister for Finance, Mr Cowen, when he meets MEPs and members of the Council of the West in Dublin today.
The delegation will tell Mr Cowen that about €600 million in National Development Plan finance has not been spent in the Border, Midlands and Western (BMW) region, and provision needs to be made to identify projects which should be fast-tracked to support development.
Fianna Fáil MEP Mr Seán Ó Neachtain said investment should include spending on infrastructure, including roads, railways and communications.
Describing the delivery of the National Roads Programme as "like spokes of a bicycle" in that it all emanates from Dublin, he said there was a "lack of connectivity" between the regions. The road and rail corridors linking towns and villages along the western seaboard had been identified by investors as crucial areas for investment.
He also said the extension of broadband communications, water and energy services to all areas should be included in the package to facilitate business development. Yet he maintained that even though spending in the area had fallen behind development plan targets, the region's rate of economic development was among the fastest of any Objective One region in the EU.
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/irishtimes/8a09a42a-bf7b-491e-848d-432f8309b3fa.png)