Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

That is a crucial part of moving those projects forward.

I welcome the transfer of functions that is envisaged in the Bill. In the past ten years the State has done considerable groundwork on considering coastal zone management and contemporary practices in other European countries. I hope we can learn from that as we move forward to modernising the planning regime that will apply in the foreshore area. There is an unparalleled opportunity for both development and protection of the biosphere. I look forward to the developments that the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government will bring forward to modernise the legislation in this area.

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