Midlands events centre
Deputy Clendennen proposes a study into a midlands events centre to serve major outdoor and indoor gatherings. The Taoiseach welcomes the region’s event and investment potential, while the Ceann Comhairle moves on before further discussion.
Over a short number of weeks, we will see over 300,000 people descend on Offaly for the Tullamore Show and, right now, the National Ploughing Championships. The Taoiseach has visited both events and has seen at first hand how well the Tullamore Show committee and the National Ploughing Association have organised them. I also acknowledge the role of An Garda Síochána. There is a model in the National Convention Centre here in Dublin and the Cork event centre, which is in the pipeline. There is also an opportunity to have a midlands event centre catering for outdoor and indoor events. Now is an opportunity to look at this. It would be in line with Fáilte Ireland's corporate strategy for spreading regional growth to build a stronger year-round nationwide sector. Will the Government consider conducting a feasibility study to explore the potential for such a facility, which would bring employment, economic development and much-needed jobs? Offaly is best placed to fill that need.
Comment on this
I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I was at the Tullamore Show and the ploughing championships, and the Fianna Fáil think-in was in Tullamore as well. It is all happening. I also went to Tullamore D.E.W. distillery, which has received €150 million in private sector investment in its extraordinary facility, which is linked to the farming community of the midlands and provides significant employment in the area. Offaly, Laois and the entire area is also becoming a potentially very significant energy hub, particularly for onshore wind, battery storage and so on. There is also rewilding and the placement of national parks potentially in the future, which is something I will look at. The Deputy talked about a possible new convention centre. Obviously, that would have to be fundamentally done by the private sector. The State has had a sort of a hit-and-miss engagement. The National Convention Centre took ages and it was complex.
