Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Sinn Féin for its support for Project Ireland 2040 and the national planning framework. It is very welcome because it is an ambitious and important plan for our country.

On the project mentioned, funding was granted as part of the first phrase of funding under the urban regeneration fund, which was announced last year. That funding was category A funding, which meant it would be on the first call list for the second tranche of funding. We were to have announced that by now but we are still processing applications under the initial round of funding from some of the local authorities. This work will complete shortly. Following its completion, we will open up a second round of funding and for a longer period this time to allow some of the category B projects to apply for category A funding. It will open soon and will run for approximately three months to allow local authorities time to submit their applications. Given the status of the project in Waterford, it is well ahead of the rest in terms of being able to secure additional funding.

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