Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

The Minister of State has gone down the road a good bit in bringing clarity to this issue. According to him, the regional planning guidelines will be the linchpin for a strategy comprising local area plans, county development plans, regional authorities and the national spatial strategy all the way up to Government thinking. However, I am unsure as to the stage at which there will be public consultation. Will it be before the final draft of a regional plan?

According to the Minister of State, there will be consultation with local authorities, but will he clarify whether the main regional planning guidelines come from the Minister? Some will come from county managers, senior planners and the major stakeholders, such as energy companies, within the regional authority areas, but the Minister's office and the Government will surely have some involvement. Is it fair to say the guidelines, which will be the linchpin, will comprise a considerable amount of Government thinking and strategies? If so, is there a need for regional authorities? Much of the contents of regional planning guidelines will reflect Government thinking.

At what stage will the public consultation process occur? Will the Government, working with county managers and regional authority managers, introduce guidelines? They will be published, public consultation will occur for a period and a plan will go on public display. Will it go on display in the same way as a county development plan? When local area plans and county development plans are being adopted by local authorities, will they need to take regional planning guidelines into account?