One-off rural houses not the answer, claims Ó Cuív

THE future of rural Ireland is not about one-off houses — but about the kind of society and value system we want.

That was the message yesterday to campaigners on rural issues from Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs Eamon Ó Cuiv. He insisted rural housing was part of a much bigger question about the quality of community life in both urban and rural communities.

“Do we want rural decline and urban sprawl? Do we want the isolation, the festering sense of dislocation and the disintegration that go with them? Do we want people spending hours in cars to get to their place of work or education each day?” he asked.