Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Along with other members, I welcome the assistance officials have given to this committee and the Houses in the course of this process.

The national spatial strategy was scrapped in 2012 by the previous Government and not replaced. It is high time for such a strategy or framework and I welcome that its replacement has eventually arrived. I am disappointed that it took six years for the plan to come to fruition. That is a matter for Deputy O'Dowd.