Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The plans are bottom-up in nature. They will be designed with input from the key stakeholders in each region. It is up to the regions to devise their own plans and to prioritise what they see are the most ambitious targets they can achieve within their regions in the coming years. I already outlined the key stakeholders that will participate in that. I would be happy to get a copy of the draft plan and share it with the Deputy and he can have an input into it in that way.

Lessons need to be learned from the previous plans. Much of the funding that was allocated has not been drawn down and we need to understand why. Obviously, the Covid pandemic was a contributory factor but it is not the only reason. Earlier this week I met the CEO of Enterprise Ireland who is determined that the new schemes to be announced next year take account of the past experiences and what went wrong with some of the schemes in the previous plan.

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