asked the Minister for the Environment if every effort will be made in 1983 to have an emergency programme of repairs carried out on county roads.

It is solely a matter for each county council to plan, to provide the finance required, and to execute whatever programme of maintenance works on county roads they may adopt for 1983. I have no function in this matter.

Would the Minister of State's Department be prepared to allow particular local authorities, who have a very large mileage of county roads an allocation of some funds from their national primary route grant or other grants to the block grant, which is the only source of revenue available to the local authorities at the moment for the repair of county roads? In Donegal we find that we can surface roads only once every 17 years and this is very unsatisfactory.

I recognise that in the Deputy's constituency of Donegal, which has a substantial tourist dimension to it, there are arguments in favour of the case he is putting forward. I suggest that if the county council, the elected members and the officials, can put up a sustainable case I will certainly look at it. If it means that we invest efficiently in the road system then I am predisposed to look at it sympathetically.

This problem is just not unique in Donegal. It is a national problem. I suggest that there is sufficient information available on files in the Department from every county to assist the Minister in making a decision on this. It is a question of finance. The Minister of State is well aware of the problem because he and his party colleagues, together with members of the other party who form the Government, accompanied deputations to me when I was in the Department. Can the Minister say if extra money will be made available in the budget this year to help the local authorities in regard to the county roads programme?

The Deputy would seem to be anticipating a debate which will arise out of the budget.

Therefore, I cannot give the information at this stage.