HE’S LOOKING likely he will be at the centre of the next Government and tonight Fine Gael’s Joe McHugh vowed to put Donegal and the Border region at the heart of the next administration.
The Fine Gael general election manifesto launched yesterday includes a Border Economic Plan designed to create jobs in the Border region.
Speaking on Wednesday after his Party launched its manifesto, Donegal North East candidate and Spokesperson on North-South Cooperation McHugh said: “Fine Gael offers a policy driven agenda to the Irish people in this general election campaign.
“Our manifesto includes a Border Economic Plan that proposes a joint economic programme for job creation in the Border region, on both sides of the Border. The manifesto commits to developing this plan in partnership with the British government.
“The manifesto supports enhanced cooperation and coordination in the provision of key infrastructure on the island of Ireland, including energy, transport and telecommunications, and it references the Border region jobs plan that I jointly authored with Enda Kenny.
Deputy McHugh added: “The July 2010 report includes Fine Gael’s commitment to building electricity interconnection between North and South, and it includes a specific commitment to developing the A5 dual carriageway from Derry-Aughnacloy, along with upgrading the N14 from Letterkenny-Lifford and the N2 from Aughnacloy-Monaghan.
“Fine Gael will deliver on key transport requirements for the northwest.
“The outgoing Government focused its Northern policy energies on bedding down the peace process. Now the policy focus must be on job creation, because 100,000 people in Ulster are unemployed, including 21,000 in Donegal. The next Government must very hard with the British Government to deliver on this. Fine Gael has the policy plan to drive the Border region jobs agenda.”
