Joe Neville
Kildare North · Fine Gael · Ireland
“With the pyrite mediation scheme closing in just four months' time, on 30 November, some people in my constituency have real concerns. Yesterday, I met two constituents who highlighted the fact that their neighbours had been impacted by pyrite in the past and they are concerned about how it might impact them in future.”
“One of the largest semiconductor plants world-wide is only a few hundred metres from my house. It is a large employer where a multitude of my friends, neighbours and even family, at times, have been employed. Intel has been hugely important in north Kildare and, indeed, internationally.”
“We are ahead of the curve from a European point of view in north Kildare in that we have Intel, which many other countries in Europe do not have. We have a knowledge base and a history. Intel has been there since I was a child. With that local knowledge and capability, we want to ensure Ireland stays a step ahead.”
“The issue I want to raise today is the national semiconductor plan. A lot of people wonder what exactly semiconductors are and what exactly that means because it can be a catch-all name in itself. Realistically, they are the chips that power modern electronics and modern computing.”
“Whatever element it is, its support to the State is enormous and that is something of which I think we are all very conscious. Once again, with its importance and the key impacts of the national semiconductor plan in mind, what I am specifically asking about today is the progress and plans we have regarding the clusters, growth and employ…”
“I welcome the response, as well as the many announcements that have come in and the efforts that have been made. Even going back to last year's budget, one thing I highlighted beforehand and discussed was the importance of the R and D tax credit.”
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“It was put in place in 1945. That pipe is at such risk of bursting that the water pressure has to be run really low. What I am highlighting is the need for basic infrastructure in north Kildare to deliver this housing. As regards the commission report, while there is a point about infrastructure - I think it is in section 7 of chapter 3 - there is probably not enough focus on it. Infrastructure could have taken up a larger section of the commission's report. As many of us have seen, if the infrastructure is not delivered, it will be impossible to deliver houses. In that context, there is one bridge in Celbridge. It was there 200 years or 150 years ago, when the population might have been 300 to 500. The population of Celbridge, which Mark Ward and Eoin Ó Broin know because they live right across from it, is 23,000.”
“In Leixlip today, there are houses being built. If we go to Celbridge, there are houses being built. In Kilcock, there are houses being built. In Clane, there are houses being built. Everywhere you turn, including Naas and Sallins, there are houses being built. However, we need to deliver those houses properly and put them in good community space, ensuring that people can move around and that we have the bridges, the schools, the crèches and the water infrastructure to go with the housing. At the weekend, people were talking about St. Patrick's Day and getting ready to celebrate. In Leixlip, there was a burst water pipe on Saturday afternoon. This meant that 7,700 homes were left without water for more than 24 hours. Meanwhile, over in Celbridge and Hazelhatch, there is another pipe that is 6.5 km long and 80 years old.”
“Many people with a lot of knowledge across a really wide spectrum have delivered it and, in fairness, it is a huge document covering a range of areas. I will focus on three areas because we could discuss the whole issue in general and go on for a while, but it is important to focus on the report, not just to have a discussion on housing and pick different topics. We should try to parse the report down to individual areas. Today, I will just try to focus on infrastructure, affordable housing and creating sustainable communities. Infrastructure delivery, as well as having affordable housing realistically in nice, good and sustainable communities, will be key for the people who will live in our areas. In Kildare North, we have a huge number of houses being delivered. I see my colleague Aidan Farrelly sitting across the way.”
“I am delighted to be able to speak on this extremely important topic. It has been the major national issue for a number of years. As a county councillor in Kildare, I saw that at first hand. I saw it from the point of view of the person who could not get a house, obtain zoning for land or build a house. We have seen planning permissions come in. In some locations, the people have been against them and in others people have been for them, so delivering houses, as we know, is very complex. A commission report like this tries to deal with the larger issues and to cut across the issue. We know it is an impossible task just to try to crystallise what is happening in housing development and the construction industry more widely, but the commission report has succeeded in some elements, and we should welcome such a report.”
“Indeed, Uisce Éireann has had to reduce the water pressure so much that residents in housing estates like Primrose Gate and Hazelhatch Park cannot even use their water in the way they need to. The pipes between Leixlip and Maynooth are also consistently bursting, leaving areas such as Confey, especially, open to risk. These are basic services. Will the Government push Uisce Éireann to invest quickly and more effectively in Kildare North?”
“I refer to the regular water outages we are having in north Kildare. Following the bursting of a pipe, there has been chronic low water pressure in Leixlip, Celbridge, Maynooth and even in Naas. This is a daily struggle for people living all around Kildare North. The population has exploded but the water infrastructure is buckling. We see it every day. There were even outages on Christmas Day. These issues were not common in my childhood and even up to ten years ago. In the past five years especially, we have had difficulties. The pipe serving half of Celbridge, from Hazelhatch to Newcastle, was put down in 1945, making it 80 years old. It stretches for 6 km and bursts consistently.”
“Our communities cannot afford to be left behind any longer. Thousands of new homes have been built, yet much of our infrastructure still belongs to the 18th and 19th centuries. North Kildare has delivered where other areas have lagged behind, but this has led to unthinkable traffic, stretched social amenities and little in the way of public resources. These are the everyday realities facing the people of north Kildare. I am here to be the voice of those people, so I ask if we can get the infrastructure and resources required to meet those urgent needs in north Kildare in the lifetime of this Government.”
“Is mór an onóir dom é a bheith i Dáil Éireann as a Member of the Thirty-fourth Dáil following in the footsteps of those elected to the First Dáil in 1918. I thank the people of north Kildare who placed their trust in me, the people of Leixlip who supported me as a councillor and my wife, children, family, friends and parents for their unwavering encouragement. Just like my uncle Dan and cousin Tom from Limerick, who served in this House before me, I am committed to working on behalf of the people with great dedication. The population of north Kildare has grown rapidly, yet the infrastructure lags behind. Urgent priorities in this regard include a second bridge in Celbridge, an expansion of the DART+ to Sallins and Kilcock, a reunified Castletown House estate, crèche spaces, water services, new schools and improved disability services.”