I do not know if the Taoiseach has ever been in the town of Mallow when traffic is heavy, but I can tell him it is quite the experience. If he has been there, I do not know if he has ever wandered down to a place called the Plaza to have a look at a traffic system which just does not work. Mallow needs a relief road. Why will the Government and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, not fund a project in this regard? The recent €300,000 allocation came as a savage disappointment to people in Mallow. Once again, their hopes were raised and then dashed by the parties in power. An allocation of €1 million would have done the job to get the relief road to the planning stage. I do not think it is an exaggeration to say that if the money is not put aside for a relief road and if motorists still have to go through the town, more than a few of those motorists will go through the Government parties when it is time to vote later in the year. The Taoiseach needs to pay attention to this one.

I have been to Mallow many times. I agree that it needs its relief road. An allocation has been made for this year to progress the project. TII has the capacity, if it makes savings and underspends in other areas, to transfer funds to that project too. However, €300,000 will be adequate to progress the project. That is the important thing for the town.