Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I launched the pilot town living scheme last October to encourage increased residential occupancy at the heart of our rural towns and villages. The six towns included in the pilot scheme are Boyle, County Roscommon; Callan, County Kilkenny; Ballinrobe, County Mayo; Banagher, County Offaly; Castleblayney, County Monaghan; and Cappoquin, County Waterford. The scheme is being led by the relevant local authorities which are acting in close collaboration with all relevant stakeholders. Funding of up to €100,000 is being made available to each local authority to progress the pilot scheme. The funding will be used by local authorities to engage with communities and local businesses to identify practical solutions to increase the number of people living in rural towns. I expect to receive a report from each of the local authorities in the first half of the year on the progress they have made. The six pilot towns identified for the pilot represent a range of towns of different sizes in different locations, each of which has its own strengths and challenges. Given the mix of towns involved, they may each come up with different solutions to meet the needs of their areas. However, the learnings from these pilots may also provide an indication as to what might work well for similar types of town on a wider scale. It is envisaged that the solutions identified through this pilot could lead to the development of more substantive proposals for funding from the rural regeneration and development fund in due course.

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