Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Vice Chairman for letting me back in.

I would like to ask the Minister of State about the proposals related to local authority boundaries. He said in response to questions asked by another member of the committee that the new statutory joint structures, under option 3, will be placed on a statutory footing. He mentioned that the structures would encompass zoning powers. I have not seen the word "zoning" used in this context previously. Option 3 originally referred to a focus on spatial planning, which suggested to me that it would involve planners working collaboratively. The Minister of State specifically used the word "zoning".