Following a meeting with the North's Minister for Infrastructure to discuss the overdue development of the N2 and its connection to the A5 in the North, an exchange of words is ongoing in Monaghan County Council.
During an interview in Northern Sound, Cathaoiorleach of the council Sinn Féin's Cathy Bennett said she didn't think it appropriate that the delegation from Monaghan requested money from the Northern Ireland Assembly to fund the completion of the N2. Councillor Bennett said the money should come from the Irish Government and is long overdue. She was responding to comments made by Fianna Fáil's Councillor P J O'Hanlon.
Councillor O'Hanlon has moved to correct the Cathaoirleach who he said, took his comments up wrong. P J O'Hanlon said he asked Officials in the North to push for the funding from the Irish Government, something the Infrastructure Minister undertook to do. Cllr O'Hanlon also set out his stall with regards to how €600 m sent from the south to the north for work on the A5 should have been spent: "We're sending €600m to the A5, which I do support but, I'll be honest with you, I only support it if the N2 is going to be done as well," Cllr O'Hanlon told Northern Sound, "I do not support the €600m going to the A5 in =isolation of the N2. There's approximately 1.5 per cent of the population of the Republic of Ireland living in County Monaghan," he continued, "We're sending €600m up to the A5 so, 1.5 per cent i €9m and we can't get €1m to do a feasibility study on the N2."
