The new National Islands Policy which is to run for the next ten years has been branded a “disappointment” by a former Minister for the Islands.

Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív said the document lacked any new financial commitments and after twelve years of underinvestment, “things don’t appear to be heading into a period of any great action” for Galway’s island communities.

Speaking to the Connacht Tribune, the Galway West TD was particularly critical of the strategy’s failure to recognise the particular challenges to the provision of vital services on the islands – and the failure to commit to solutions which he said had proven successful in the past.

In areas such as water services, fibre broadband, electricity, and health and education infrastructure, islands would regularly fall foul of the ‘cost benefit analysis’ that was used for mainland projects.

“Take for example Inis Oírr and Inis Mór, they badly need sewage treatment plants. With all the commitments that Irish Water and the County Council have, they are never going to get to the top of the list.

“When I was Minister, we got around that by providing matched funding for the islands,” said Deputy Ó Cuív.

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