Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I can certainly get that information for Senator Boyhan. There would have been active and ongoing engagement with the CCMA during the Covid-19 pandemic because development plans have stalled. We can also seek clarification on the other points for the Senator.

The Senator is correct that this has been a very useful debate. I would not like anyone to leave this Chamber with the assumption that this provision is trying to stifle public engagement. The opposite is the case. This is trying to facilitate and broaden public engagement. I would not be speaking in favour of and supporting this measure if that were not the case. It is important to note that we are doing our best to give everybody an opportunity to have his or her voice heard in the development plan process. Senator McDowell made a point on a predetermined plan. A development plan, in particular, is an open-ended question. It is how we would like to see our city and county develop over the next five years. In that regard, it is important to try to take in all of the views of members of the public using different formats and methodologies, be they through much more participative and inclusive methodologies at public meetings or using online forms and other sources to gather information and data.

The point has also be made on the role of the strategic policy committees and local community development committees. I was not a great fan of the Putting People First: Action Programme for Effective Local Government 2014 reforms but they created good participative structures within which community groups could involve and engage themselves. We cannot discount those in trying to create a robust issues paper to set off on the development plan process. Is important to also make that point.

It is also the case that local authorities take a very strong sense of pride, both at executive and the elected member level, in their inclusion of minority groups. The issue of literacy had been mentioned. It is of great importance that marginalised groups are included in a process where there are issues that prevent them from making written submissions. These groups are being included. The local authority awards include awards in the areas of inclusion and participation in which local government engages. These are all important. As I said, local authorities take a great sense of pride in ensuring they include as many people as possible.

In summary, we are trying to ensure that in the long term we have as broad a strategy as possible for inclusion. The option of town hall meetings is not discounted but this measure offers the opportunity to have a much broader inclusive debate through the use of different resources. I stress again that the programme for Government sets an objective to move away from linear consultation processes to much more participative and inclusive methodologies, not just for development plans but for various plans and policies, and not just at local government level but at every other level.