Dublin commuters living a ‘sad life’
WEXFORD people are being forced to commute to Dublin to work and have a sad life because of the Government’s neglect of rural Ireland.
This was the opinion voiced by several councillors, who expressed concern and frustration at how different arms of the Government have washed their hands of the county’s rural communities in recent times.
Cllr Michael Whelan said families need to be accommodated in villages and small towns across the county.
‘We need a policy where empty houses are turned around as quickly as possible and we need families back into these houses and to keep schools open,’ he said.
Cllr Whelan said Duncannon is a village which has lost its post office this year and its shop in recent times.
‘Locals are trying to get the fort open. There is a potential shop owner looking to come into the village and I can’t show him a development plan for the area.’
Cllr John Fleming said the last person leaving rural Ireland needs to be asked to turn off the light.
‘ That’s the way things have gone. We are being hit from all sides in rural County Wexford.’
Cllr Ger Carthy said the lack of broadband is negatively affecting communities across rural Wexford.
He said Irish Water’s policies mean single houses will be a thing of the past.
‘ That will have a knock-on effect on how we maintain our communities, our schools and other organisations. We need to have a proactive and not a reactive housing policy.’
Calling for a plan to be formulated for rural County Wexford incorporating Irish Water and different relevant agencies. Cllr Carthy said a cross-party committee should steer it.
Cllr Pip Breen said Irish Water is the reason the county’s villages’ growth have been stymied.
He said: ‘ There are proposals to improve sewerage facilities in villages which will take three to four years. No-one can wait that long in rural Ireland. These villages will die. There are three to four houses in my area which the owners just left as the banks would not engage with them. Now they are dumping grounds as there are no owners and therefore no-one around to police them.’
He said Eir cherry-picked houses down country lanes having completed broadband provision on the main thoroughfares, thereby shutting out other broadband providers from generating business in remote rural areas.
Cllr Barbara Anne Murphy said: ‘During the industrial revolution people didn’t flock to towns and cities. We are a rural, dispersed people and we don’t want to live in big cities. We want to live in rural towns and villages. They are part of our history and where are want to be.’
She said poor broadband and non existent phone reception is another issue.
‘I signed a contract for broadband in August and they are only getting out to me this week. On the phone front I have to hang out a certain window in my house and hold my elbow at a certain degree (to get reception). We are simply not getting the resources. Without sewerage we can’t get housing schemes built. They would keep our local schools and communities going. We want to ensure our people are getting exactly what they deserve.’
She said access to health services is also a major issue.
‘If you have a heart attack please ensure you have it in Dublin. There are 150,000 of us here and it’s about time they knew we existed.’
Cllr Michael Sheehan echoed the need for a cross-party committee.
He said the county ranks among the lowest for education nationally. ‘We have the highest number of people attending second level education only and also for school absenteeism. On the transport front we simply don’t have the services we require. Our villages and towns are going to wither unless there is investment in broadband and transport. ‘
Cllr Sheehan said County Wexford has among the highest number of people accessing services for drug, alcohol and mental health issues.
‘We are scoring high for people living with loneliness and in fear and a recent IDA report showed that only 600 jobs were created in the south east last year. All of these things raise huge challenges for us at a time when we are being bypassed in New Ross and in Enniscorthy. I am not sure we can meet these challenges unless we get investment from the Government.’
Cllr Paddy Kavanagh said: ‘We are being swallowed up as a county by Dublin. We are in an unenviable position where we are lumped in with Waterford, south Tipperary and the south east region. It’s just not working for us.
‘We are near enough to Dublin where we have to commute to if we want a job but what kind of a lifestyle is there when you have to drop the children at a child-minder at 6 a.m. Then, unless you’re at the Glen of the Downs before 7 a.m., you add another hour to your day’s drive stuck in a line of traffic.’
Cllr Kavanagh said County Wexford isn’t called the Model County without due cause.
‘People in other counties have this perception that we are all naturally wealthier but it’s a fallacy. Yes we produce 10 per cent of the country’s food but food is being produced for nothing. In the 80s farmers got 45 per cent of the market value milk sold for and now it’s down to 16 per cent. The money is going to the supermarket middleman and to the supermarkets.’
He said multiples are shutting down small businesses in towns and villages across the county.
‘As a county we are not getting our fair share for what we produce. We are seeing the best of the county leaving us every day to go to Dublin. It’s a very tough lifestyle if you have to get into a car every morning and every evening. It’s a sad life. Sunday night these commuters are facing into a rat race again.’
He said the county’s youth are starved of a third level education.
‘ The reality is our young people are leaving the county and they’re not coming back.’
Cllr Lisa McDonald said Irish Water officials need to be asked why it’s taking six months to get a water connection for a house.
She said: ‘A lot of Wexford people are working from home. The regeneration of rural communities is needed. There is a fantastic, state-of-the-art school in Poulfur. We need to ensure that area is kept vibrant along with rural communities across the county and this comes back to Irish Water.’
She called on the executive
THE BEST OF THE COUNTY LEAVE US EVERY DAY TO GO TO DUBLIN. IT’S A VERY TOUGH LIFESTYLE IF YOU HAVE TO GET INTO A CAR EVERY MORNING AND EVERY EVENING. IT’S A SAD LIFE
and her colleagues in Wexford County Council to take this issue by the scruff of the neck and find a solution for Wexford.
Cllr McDonald said developing an ambitious tourism strategy is the best avenue to securing the future of communities across the county, including along the route of the planned Rosslare Strand to Waterford Greenway.
Cllr Johnny Mythen said: ‘We have a major problem and unfortunately it comes down to policy. I am from Enniscorthy. We live in small towns in a rural area which has the third highest level of rural deprivation in the country. We have a strong case to put forward for funding.’
The councillors agreed to mount a cross-party campaign to seek funding and support to protect rural County Wexford.