Credit where credit is due to Pat for role in action plan for rural Ireland

SIR, The Action Plan for Rural Development (APRD), which promises 135,000 jobs outside of Dublin by 2020, was launched by the Government with great fanfare in Ballymahon last week. But, as we say in Kerry, give credit where credit is due. So, full credit for the action plan must be given to Pat Spillane, whose unrelenting passion for rural development provided the energy and vision to bring the plan to fruition.

Pat Spillane chaired the Commission on the Economic Development of Rural Areas (CEDRA), which presented a detailed report to the Government in 2014. The Charter for Rural Ireland was published in January 2016 based on the recommendations contained in Pat Spillane’s CEDRA report. The action plan, which was published by the Government last week, gives a commitment to implement the objectives of the Charter for Rural Ireland.

The APRD represents the last chance to save rural Ireland from the ravages of unemployment, isolation, depopulation, loneliness and neglect.

The APRD is a cohesive plan with clear objectives and measureable outcomes, unlike some of the aspirational and vague policy documents which have preceded it. The National Broadband Plan to provide high speed broadband in every part of the country, the investment in sports and community facilities, the repair and upgrading of unused premises and the provision of real, sustainable jobs are all achievable over the next three years. Committing the IDA to increase foreign direct investment in rural areas by 40 per cent and the provision of direct support for indigenous industry is commendable. The APRD is set in a clear timeframe of three years and must deliver concrete results by 2020 if rural Ireland is to be reinvigorated.

Pat Spillane is deservedly the Ambassador for rural development. Based on his impressive contribution to-date as the champion of rural Ireland, he will leave no stone unturned in his determination to have the APRD implemented with all due haste. There is now no further opportunity for the Government to procrastinate, equivocate or backtrack unless it’s prepared to face the wrath of the electorate. Far worse, the powers-that-be will feel the full force of the infamous Spillane backlash if APRD hasn’t delivered to rural Ireland by 2020. Who in Government is brave enough or foolish enough to risk being the recipient of a verbal dissection from Pat Spillane, who has the credibility and entitlement to deliver it? Sincerely, Billy Ryle, Spa, Tralee.

Pat Spillane