Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In response to Deputy Casey's question regarding rural and regional development, details of the reassignment of responsibilities among Departments, including my own, were outlined by the Taoiseach in his statement to Dáil Éireann of 6 May last. Officials of my Department have been engaging with their counterparts in other relevant Departments to establish the precise details of the functions to come under the remit of my Department and to identify the associated personnel and other resources to be transferred. This process is well advanced and I anticipate that the formal reassignment of the rural development functions from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government will take place in the coming week. This will include responsibility for the Leader programme; natural rural development schemes; rural recreation, including the walks scheme; implementation of the report of the Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas, CEDRA, and the Charter for Rural Ireland; the town and village renewal scheme; the Western Development Commission, dormant accounts; social enterprise; and the Tidy Towns competition.

Discussions are yet to be completed regarding the transfer of functions and resources in regard to the rural post office network and rural broadband. I can confirm, however, that I am already working closely with the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to advance delivery of key elements of the national broadband plan and to accelerate and prioritise the roll-out of the programme in rural areas.

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