Mr. Niall Cussen:

To be clear, the OPR is not a policy setter. Our objective is to ensure that the development plan that is passed by Wexford County Council or any other council is broadly compliant with the strategic objectives of the various plans and guidelines nationally, regionally and so on. The very scenario that the Senator outlined is partly envisaged by some of those guidelines, but the key issue he is raising is that of the provision of services in our towns and villages. That is where we should be focusing our efforts. Indeed, it is emphasised in the Minister's guidelines on rural housing that the answer to this issue lies in the provision of serviced sites for self-builds in smaller towns and villages rather than an endless proliferation across the countryside, which would end up with all sorts of unintended consequences.

The Senator asked me about Irish Water and so on. Irish Water does not fall within my remit, but we will consider this issue in the context of our reviews of local authorities and how their legitimate plans, which have been put through the ringer of our assessments in respect of their consistency with national and regional guidelines, are being supported by the various statutory agencies through investment in services. As the Senator knows, this is arising as a major issue in many local authority areas. We will be examining it more closely in due course.