It is about 40 years since rural roads in parts of Dublin have been upgraded, according to Richard Ryan, who is farming in Kilmashogue, Rathfarnam.

“The last time we got a road done was back when Dublin only had one county council, and that’s about 40 years ago,” he told the Irish Farmers Journal. The sheep farmer’s reaction comes on the back of Dublin’s exclusion from funding for rural roads and laneways under the Local Improvement Scheme.

Some €22m was allocated for the repair and improvement works on non-public roads in rural communities for 2022. However, Dublin is the only county that doesn’t benefit.

“Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown haven’t got it into their heads that there are farmers here; there could be 40 farmers in Dún Laoghaire.

“But we don’t get any money for roads. I’ve had to keep potholes filled but the road needs to be done again,” he said.