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

It is primarily a matter for the local authority and its members to work on the core strategy with the executive. This is the important point. There is a core strategy in the development plan that is able to give capacity to the smaller towns and villages in the county development plan. All of the development plans are aligned at present and making their way through the process. They have to go through appropriate assessment and the checks and balances that meet national planning framework guidelines. At the core of this is that the local authority needs to strike a good balance to ensure all towns and villages are given the capacity to grow in a sustainable way.