Today, I am going to concentrate on my constituency of Cork South-West. It is a constituency that has seen little real Government funding for decades. Such funding can, and has been, a game changer in other constituencies. Our roads, such as the N71 and the R586, have seen only pothole and storm damage repair funding down through the years.

The only improvement to the N71 that gave thought to the future was the Skibbereen bypass opened in 2003. Some 17 years later, the promised bypass in Innishannon and the southern and northern relief roads in Bandon have been abandoned by the State as budget after budget has omitted these projects from any plans, just as they have omitted passing bays on the N71 from Bandon to Skibbereen and the R586 from Bandon to Dunmanway and Bantry. These omissions mean that the job-starved west Cork cannot encourage the creation of good jobs as a result of bad roads infrastructure that has been neglected for decades.

Speaking to those who want to develop Clonakilty, I have heard that plans to develop 600 badly needed houses are in real jeopardy due to a lack of funding being spent by Irish Water, which will result in the town facing water shortages in the not-so-distant future. The rural regeneration fund has given out millions over recent years but the only shovel-ready project the council has put forward in years, the Schull harbour development project, which would have guaranteed dozens of jobs in a rural community, has been scandalously overlooked for funding while other projects across the country which were only aspirational received millions. Businesses are being flooded in Bantry town on a nearly weekly basis. They have been pleading for funding from the Office of Public Works for decades to carry out works but have been left to fend for themselves.

The Taoiseach may tell me that these issues arose under previous governments and that change is coming, but his Government had its chance last week with the announcement of €63.5 million in greenway funding, not one brown cent of which came to west Cork to fund great greenway projects such as those proposed to run from Cork to Kinsale, from Inishannon to Bandon and along many other parts of west Cork's old railway line. Greenway cycling and walking routes could have easily been rolled out in these areas and would have been a huge boost to those areas if developed but again the Taoiseach's Government overlooked this opportunity.

The Taoiseach will say that it is easy for me to point out what is wrong in west Cork without seeking a solution. One solution I will put to the Taoiseach today is the establishment of a special task force for west Cork. If set up, such a task force would have to have a clear focus on jobs and funding for our roads and important projects in west Cork, which are overlooked year after year.

With regard to Bandon, in a recent Zoom meeting I had with the Bandon Business Association I saw that its members are full of energy and have many ideas about how to pick up their town after Covid-19, but they need state aid. They need the State to focus on the town's needs. They spoke of the need for the northern relief road and the urgent need to finish the southern relief road if the town is to make any headway. They spoke of a new focus from IDA Ireland on jobs for Bandon. There are serious questions over IDA Ireland. When did it last announce jobs for Bandon? These are all matters on which the task force should concentrate if set up. Bandon has also seen a major lack of investment in its educational needs as children are refused entry to the secondary school. I ask the Taoiseach to set up such a task force for west Cork immediately to put us on a level playing pitch with the rest of the country.

I thank the Deputy for raising a range of issues pertaining to west Cork. He may, at any stage, raise issues with me if he wishes. Deputies Christopher O'Sullivan and Cairns have come to me with individual projects. When the flooding happened, for example, we were able to respond quickly to some of the issues that arose. The Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath, in particular was alert and quick in responding to the needs of the various towns that were flooded.

The Deputy talked about high-quality jobs. I was in Clonakilty in September and the enterprise park in that town has been a particular success, as the Deputy will know, as a result of historic investment. I was there for the announcement of 150 additional jobs by Global Shares, which brings the total number it employs to approximately 500. That company will grow again. It is a very exciting and interesting company. I was at its foundation when I was Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. It is high-tech and based in Clonakilty. It demonstrates the capacity of Clonakilty and other towns to attract quality companies of that kind because of the good quality of life. As the Deputy will know, there is a very enterprising culture and spirit across west Cork, particularly in the agrifood industry which has grown out of the various co-ops from Carberry to Barryroe. These are high-quality, effective co-operatives that create employment in their localities. Before Covid, the area had thriving food, culture, entertainment and tourism sectors. The tourism sector has obviously taken a very big hit because of Covid and we must do everything we possibly can to help.

I will take on board the road projects the Deputy has identified and I will discuss that with the county council, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, and the Minister who is involved.

I assure the Deputy that I will leave no stone unturned in doing everything I possibly can to encourage investment into west Cork. In particular, I will see if we can fast-track any State projects that are in the pipeline because much capital has been allocated in this year's budget with €10 billion to be spent next year. The real issue will be the capacity of the State to deliver those capital projects across the length and breadth of the country, including in west Cork. If greenways were shovel ready, there would have been money made available for them. I have no doubt about that. I am alive to the potential for the old west Cork railway line becoming an exciting and interesting greenway project. I would be keen to advance that and Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan has been in touch with me about the Innishannon to Bandon route but again my sense is that it needs a bit more advancement to a stage whereby if funding was allocated, it would be spent on it fairly quickly. I thank the Deputy for raising these issues with me.

The Taoiseach mentioned jobs in Clonakilty and I agree that every job announced is to be welcomed but he should remember that houses are needed in Clonakilty and that funding is needed for Irish Water. Developers are willing to build 600 houses there but they cannot do so because they are running short of water. Funding for west Cork is not getting through.

The Taoiseach talks about projects being shovel ready. The Schull project could have created 30 to 40 jobs in a rural community with rural regeneration funding. It was a county council project that was shovel ready. It was ahead of its time in comparison to any other project in Ireland but it was refused rural regeneration funding. Those funds were spent all over the country but nothing came down into west Cork. In terms of road funding, we are getting zero. I am talking about proper road funding for bypasses that are promised year after year. There is greenway funding of €63.5 million. That is the Taoiseach's opportunity as he is in government but he is saying we should wait and that everything has to be shovel ready. Somebody has to make these projects shovel ready and encourage them along the line.

Are they shovel ready?

Funding provided for the promised endoscopy unit in Bantry General Hospital has been left there as has funding for schools in Bandon. The purpose of my question is to ask the Taoiseach to set up a task force to concentrate on communities from Innishannon to Mizen Head and from Kinsale to the Beara Peninsula. Will the Taoiseach consider setting up that task force so that we can focus on west Cork going forward?

There was an interesting short film in the Cork Film Festival last week on the Dursey Sound cable car. Did the Deputy see it?

I did not.

It put west Cork on the map. It is a fabulous film and it was eight to ten minutes long.

Great.

It illustrates the potential of that iconic and landmark cable car, which has far more tourist potential than that for which it was originally intended. It was an extraordinary piece of filming and I recommend it to the Deputy. It also illustrated the artistic creativity that to me is the hallmark of west Cork and that will help to drive the area forward.

I asked the Deputy to get those greenways shovel ready and then we will get funding for them.

They are there. What about the task force?

The Deputy knows the story with task forces. They have been appointed since time began. It is more important to get the projects through. We have county councils and all sorts of bodies that have been created over time so let us work through the existing bodies and get LEADER funding and so on in place.

No task force so.

Every secondary school in west Cork got the grant that everybody else got-----

No task force.

-----and that is the first time ever they would have gotten minor work scheme grants twice in the one year. That happened in the context of Covid-19 but that will be significant and there will be school projects, like in every other area around the country.