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The Society of St Vincent de Paul this week said decisions that are taken without any communication with those who they will affect most, shows a complete lack of respect for communities in rural Ireland. And how true that is!
While we regularly hear that 'things are picking up', a drive through any town or village will show that recovery is still very much in first gear. We can all see the negative affect the smoking ban and the clampdown on drink driving, while both were necessary, has had on rural pubs. In turn, this meant the cut-off of a social outlet for many rural dwellers.
SVP has called on all service providers in rural Ireland, particularly state services, to seriously explore and take full account of the needs of rural communities when the curtailment or abandonment of services are being considered.
SVP members witness on a daily basis the isolation, loneliness and difficulty caused by the relentless curtailment of services throughout rural Ireland in recent years. We have seen the closure of post offices, garda stations, schools, transport services, banks, shops and pubs and more recently the announcement by Bus Eireann to withdraw 15 rural bus routes and the reduction of many others.
Communities must be given an opportunity to seek sustainable alternatives, hence the responsibility on service providers to communicate, well in advance of any closures, the problems they are having and place their concerns before the communities affected.
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