Rural Schemes
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-05
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Dara Calleary (FF), Mayo

I cannot give commitments on the floor of the House to specific groups without seeing the detail. I know the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer, is engaging and working hard with the Mayfield community in particular. We have substantially transformed the funding opportunities available for libraries in recent years. That funding is available through local authorities and working in partnership with local authorities. I can assure the Deputy in relation to investment in community centres. The investment in the refurbishment is very important. As we discussed earlier, this has resulted in a 90% increase in usage in existing facilities. In regard to new builds, I am very focused on delivering the current plans but also on opening up a new funding round for new builds. We will work to assist communities in terms of the knowledge and work necessary to prepare for that application process. That is work that will be worthwhile when we get to opening that particular scheme. I assure the Deputy the Government and the Minister of State, Deputy Buttimer and I are very focused on backing and supporting community ambition.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-05/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:36+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-05