Mr. Fintan O'Brien:

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for their invitation to the meeting today. I understand the committee is holding a series of meetings relating to urban and rural regeneration, so we are happy to be here today to discuss our Department’s role in relation to the rural element of that discussion. I am joined today by two colleagues, Mr. J.P. Mulherin and Mr. Eddie Forsyth, both of whom are principal officers in the Department of Rural and Community Development with responsibility for policies and schemes which are of direct relevance to the matters being discussed by the committee.

As a starting point for the discussion I am sure the committee members are aware that Our Rural Future, the national rural development plan for 2021 to 2025, was published last year. The policy clearly recognises that not all rural areas are identical and that individual towns, villages and parishes differ significantly. Our approach to rural development and regeneration must take account of this reality.

The policy also sets out the challenges and opportunities that face rural Ireland and includes a range of actions for delivery over the period of the policy which aims to deliver on the policy’s stated vision of a thriving rural Ireland which is integral to our national economic, social, cultural and environmental well-being and development. The policy also recognises the interdependence of urban and rural areas, the centrality of people and the importance of vibrant and lived-in rural places. The policy importantly provides a framework for the significant level of current and future investment in rural Ireland.

From this Department’s perspective the main elements of this funding which will be of relevance to today’s discussion with the committee are contained in the rural development investment programme, RDIP. The schemes included in that investment programme are the EU co-funded LEADER programme, which has been successfully implemented in Ireland over 30 years; the CLÁR programme, which has been launched this year with a €7 million budget and which provides funding for small scale infrastructural projects in certain designated rural areas; the local improvement scheme, which has a budget of €11 million in 2022 to support the improvement of non-public roads in rural communities and improve access to rural farms and homes; the outdoor recreation infrastructure scheme, which has also recently been launched for 2022 with a budget of €15 million; the town and village renewal scheme, which will be launched shortly for 2022 and will include support for streetscape enhancements and key priorities such as the development of remote network facilities, the regeneration of disused buildings for community use; and the Rural Regeneration Development Fund, RRDF, which to date has delivered funding of €278 million over a total of 191 projects.

I understand that the town and village renewal scheme and the RRDF may be of particular interest to members of the committee in the context of today’s discussion and we would be happy to provide any further detail required on these two schemes.

The town and village renewal scheme and the RRDF are also closely linked to another recent policy development which Ms Graham mentioned, namely, the publication of the Town Centre First policy. This policy was developed jointly by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and drew on the input of a wide range of expert stakeholders in its development. The policy sets out to address many of the issues which the committee may have been discussing in its recent deliberations and it includes a range of 33 actions which seek to tackle issues such as vacancy and dereliction and to give our towns the tools and resources they require in order to regenerate themselves as viable and attractive places in which people and families can live, work and run a business.

As referenced at the beginning of my remarks, no two rural areas are identical and the Town Centre First policy clearly recognises the role of locally led town teams in developing plans that recognise their own circumstances, challenges and opportunities. The initial financial supports are in place to support the roll-out of the Town Centre First policy, for example, funding has been provided for the first tranche of 26 towns to develop their own Town Centre First plans and arrangements are currently being finalised to put in place the local town regeneration officers who will play a key co-ordinating and leadership role in local authorities throughout the country and for establishing the national delivery structures that will ensure momentum and coherence in implementation of the policy.

I am conscious that my opening remarks represent a very brief overview of some of the key areas of intervention by the Department of Rural and Community Development. My colleagues and I will be very happy to answer any questions that members of the committee may have and to provide any further detail which may be required.