Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I am very happy to see this Bill introduced. It is important that we are providing ways for local authorities to come together. I know how difficult it is. Many Senators were recently local authority members. Galway County Council is trying to hold its plenary meetings by bringing 40 to 45 councillors together in large GAA halls at the moment.

The county development plan is very important, and this legislation is really about the county development plan. In my area in Ballinasloe we are looking at developing areas for residential use and for industrial use. We are crying out for office space. The local authorities have encouraged and received written submissions. If we are doing this in an online way, we need to ensure there is communication allowing people to join in. With so many online meetings, it is very hard to galvanise people to get involved in the process of submissions and consultations.

Before I became a councillor, I probably did not understand the impact a county development plan has on my local areas for five years. It has enormous repercussions. This is a crucial period for all the towns and villages in Ireland to plan for the coming five years. It needs to be cross-departmental. As Senator Fitzpatrick said, it is an enormous process taking place over nearly two years. As I only became a councillor in 2019, I have not been through it previously, but I am seeing it now and looking at it from a little further away in this House. We need to find a way to incentivise people to participate in the consultative process. When we have these online consultation measures, local authorities should have targets for the minimum number taking part in these meetings or in representative groups.

Is it possible for me to share time? I forgot to mention it at the beginning.I wish to share time with Senator Ahearn.