Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 to 11, inclusive, together.

The National Economic and Social Council, NESC, advises me on strategic policy issues relating to sustainable economic, social and environmental development in Ireland. The NESC work programme in 2022 includes five main areas. It will carry out a major piece of research and consultation on climate, biodiversity and how to achieve a just transition in agriculture. It will continue to help us deepen our understanding of how to deliver more affordable and sustainable housing systems, drawing on international and national experience, including ongoing work in Ireland on cost rental.

NESC is supporting work on Ireland's well-being framework by examining how well-being frameworks are implemented in practice. It has undertaken an extensive programme of research and consultation to support the shared island initiative. It will produce a report on the shared island in quarter 1 of 2022, which will make recommendations in five key areas, namely, economy and infrastructural investment; social policy; climate and biodiversity; well-being frameworks; and data co-ordination. It will examine aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic to help identify strategic lessons about public governance and how Government can be supported to arrange and manage its activity to deliver the best results for society.

The council published five reports in 2021; Grounding the Recovery in Sustainable Development: A Statement from the Council, report No. 152; Shared Island: Projects, Progress & Policy Scoping Paper, report No. 153; Digital Inclusion in Ireland: Connectivity, Devices & Skills, report No. 154; Ireland's Well-Being Framework: Consultation Report, report No. 155 and Collaboration on Climate and Biodiversity: Shared Island as a Catalyst for Renewed Ambition & Action, report No. 156. As reports are finalised in the relevant areas, they are brought to Government for approval in advance of publication.

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