SENATOR
LORRAINE HIGGINS STANDING UP FOR RURAL IRELAND Dear Constituent, I have a proven track record of getting things done, and have campaigned on various farming issues affecting you to include farm inspections and highlighting their unfairness, the beef crisis, farm safety and retention of essential grants to sustain your incomes. As I have shown in the past, I am not afraid to speak out independently if I feel the people of Galway East deserve to be heard. My relentless focus on issues affecting rural Ireland prove that I am committed to improving the standard of living locally and agitating for change.
RURAL AFFAIRS MINISTER APPOINTED Labour TD for Carlow Kilkenny, Ann Phelan, has been appointed Minister for Rural Affairs with Special Responsibility for Rural Economic Development (implementation of the CEDRA Report) and rural transport. The CEDRA Report was produced by the landmark Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas under Chairman Pat Spillane. It has 34 wide-ranging recommendations and Minister Phelan has already chaired the first meeting of the high-level Inter-Departmental Group which is implementing the 34 actions. Minister Phelan said, “I am delighted to have been appointed Minister specifically for Rural Affairs which I believe highlights Labour’s longstanding commitment to rural communities. I understand the challenges facing rural families and communities and I am fully committed to my role in energising Ireland’s rural economy, and in raising awareness at all levels, of the specific challenges rural areas face. My key priority is to assist economic development and stimulate job creation in rural areas.” Senator Lorraine Higgins and Rural Affairs Minister Ann Phelan
FARMERS NEED BETTER BROADBAND The need to improve broadband access for farmers in Galway East has been raised by Lorraine Higgins with the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Alex White. “Many local farmers tell me they are being hampered by slow broadband speeds, and that this is affecting their ability embrace new innovations such as calving cameras and CCTV facilities on farms. I have told the Minister that an increasing amount of business that farmers do on a daily basis is now moving online, and that in order to move forward, they need to have easy access to good broadband services The very health of the rural economy is at stake here, and farm enterprises are key to driving growth and supporting jobs in rural communities. Therefore we should be making every effort to support these enterprises, by supplying farmers with broadband that is fast, easy and reliable, and that enables them to grow.”
SUPPORTING RURAL JOBSEEKERS New figures show that the Live Register has dropped for the 26th month in a row. In August, the unemployment rate stood at 11.2%, its lowest level since the crisis peak of 15.1% in early 2012. There are now 75,000 more people at work since the recovery began in 2012. But we remain relentlessly focused on job creation and Labour in government is also determined that communities and jobseekers in rural areas will benefit from the emerging economic recovery. Tánaiste Joan Burton's Department of Social Protection maintains a range of important programmes and job activation measures to support rural jobseekers including the Rural Social Scheme, TÚS, Community Employment, Gateway and JobsPlus. In addition, Tánaiste Joan Burton has appointed Minister Kevin Humphreys as the new Minister of State at the Department of Social Protection who will have special responsibility for employment, community and social supports.
RURAL SOCIAL SCHEME The Rural Social Scheme (RSS) is aimed at people involved in farming and fishing who are on lower incomes. €45 million has been provided for the RSS in 2014 and there are currently around 2,400 participants across rural Ireland. The type of work undertaken includes local services that benefit rural communities and the RSS schedule allows participation on a farming/fishing-friendly schedule.
TÚS Over €119 million has been allocated for TÚS in 2014. There are more than 7,500 TÚS places available which provide a range of important community work placement opportunities for jobseekers including in community and voluntary organisations in rural areas. Selection for TÚS occurs through the local social protection office.
Senator Lorraine Higgins with Senator John Kelly at the 2014 Ploughing Championships
COMMUNITY EMPLOYMENT Community Employment (CE) provides important work experience and training opportunities in rural communities. There are currently 1,056 projects in operation across the country with 24,553 CE places. CE offer part-time and temporary placements in jobs based within local communities to support jobseekers' progression into employment based on the experience and new skills gained on the CE scheme. Senator Lorraine Higgins with Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Tánaiste and Labour leader Joan Burton TD
SUPPORTING TOURISM There was more encouraging news on the tourism front recently when the latest CSO figures showed a 10.3% rise in overseas visitors in the first six months of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013. The number of British visitors has begun to increase again and all indications are that it will be another record year for visitors from North America. Since 2011, the government has prioritised supporting the tourism sector as a key driver of economic activity. A series of important measures have been introduced including the abolition of the Air Travel Tax, a reduction in VAT for certain tourism services and the Visa Waiver Programme. The Gathering was an outstanding success in 2013, and 2014 has seen a major focus on the promotion of the landmark Wild Atlantic Way. The recent Government Statement of Priorities for 2014-2016 also committed to the publication of a new tourism strategy aimed at adding 50,000 new jobs for the sector over the next decade.
THE WILD ATLANTIC WAY €10 million is being invested in developing and promoting the landmark Wild Atlantic Way tourism trail that stretches 2,500km from the Inishowen Peninsula in Co. Donegal to Kinsale in Co. Cork. With 4,000 road signs marking the route, the Wild Atlantic Way is a fantastic boost to tourism all along the western seaboard and will provide significant opportunities for job creation and local businesses.
Senators Lorraine Higgins and John Kelly
FOCUS ON AGRI-FOOD One of the strongest drivers of the emerging economic recovery, has been the agri-food sector. The reputation of Ireland as a producer of high quality and unique food products is internationally renowned and growing ever stronger. The agri-food sector supports a significant number of jobs, in particular in rural Ireland, and there was a record €10 billion in food and drink exports in 2013. The Government Statement of Priorities for 2014-2016 includes the targeting of 25,000 extra jobs in the agri-food sector over the next seven years, through the implementation of Ireland’s €4 billion Rural Development Programme and the Harvest 2020 Strategy. The abolition of milk quotas next year will also present new opportunities to increase our global dairy sales with new investment around the country.
ROLLING OUT RURAL BROADBAND The provision of high quality broadband services for rural communities and businesses remains a very important government priority. The recent Government Statement of Priorities for 2014 to 2016 has re-affirmed the commitment to deliver state-led broadband intervention in rural areas with the initial phase involving a fibre build-out to over 1,100 villages. A comprehensive mapping exercise is also under way to identify all those areas across the country that will require state intervention to deliver broadband.
PROTECTING POST OFFICES The government is fully committed to the sustainability of the post office network. There are no plans to close post offices and, in fact, we fully support the concept of the post office as a “front office of Government”. For example, Tánaiste Joan Burton’s Department of Social Protection, signed a new contract with An Post which will see the company deliver over €9 billion of payments to welfare customers in 2014, involving more than 40 million transactions. The contract will be worth more than €50 million a year to An Post, and will support jobs and communities throughout the country.
Senator Lorraine Higgins Constituency Office: Piggott Street, Loughrea Office: 091 842200 Email: lorraine.higgins@oir.ie Web: www.lorrainehiggins.com @LorHiggins 0612