Mr. John Kelpie:

We have had a very strong engagement on the Ireland 2040 national planning framework consultation document as a city council but also - and probably more importantly - through a joint submission by Derry City and Strabane District Council and Donegal County Council as part of the north-west city region approach. A consultation event was held in the city a number of weeks ago with representatives from Government Departments here and in the North. We have had a very positive engagement in that regard and have been placing ourselves strategically in terms of the consultation response, reinforcing much of the contribution we have made today. Derry and the north-west region is the second largest city in the North, the fourth largest city on the island and, actually, the third largest city within the jurisdiction of the national planning framework after Dublin and Cork in that it is truly a cross-Border region and not solely a city located in one jurisdiction or the other. That gives it a unique context and provides it with the greatest ever challenge it has faced.