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

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I am very familiar with the beautiful town of Newbridge. As the Senator knows, my mother is from Morristown.

The outgoing Italian ambassador, Mr. Paolo Serpi, is in the Gallery and I wish him well. My city of Kilkenny is twinned with Formigine, a city in northern Italy. The ambassador has had a fantastic tenure here and I wish him well in his future appointments.

The urban regeneration and development fund, URDF, is one of four funds established under the National Development Plan 2018-2027, and was launched in 2018, primarily to support the national planning framework's growth enablers for the five cities and other large urban centres. The URDF provides part-funding for applicant-led projects that will support more compact and sustainable development and enable a greater proportion of residential and mixed-use development to be delivered within the existing built-up footprints of our cities and large towns, while also ensuring that more parts of our urban areas can become attractive and vibrant places in which people choose to live and work, as well as to invest and visit.

In keeping with the aims of the national planning framework and Project Ireland 2040, the URDF demonstrates a new and more tailored approach to the provision of Government support. Over its planned duration up to 2030, URDF support in excess of €2 billion will be targeted in an integrated, dynamic and responsive way to support the regeneration and rejuvenation of our towns and cities. Through the URDF, successful applicants receive targeted integrated support for innovative holistic solutions to the issues that have hindered the regeneration and rejuvenation of our large towns and cities.

To date, there have been two calls for proposals under the URDF, with a total of almost €312 million allocated so far in respect of the 87 projects approved under the first call, while in March 2021 URDF funding support of €1.3 billion was announced in respect of a countrywide programme of a further 45 proposals approved under the second call. To assist local authorities with the application process for the second call, the Department hosted a number of workshops to provide information on the purpose of the URDF programme and the types of proposals that would be considered for support.

In all, 75 proposals were considered, with every local authority submitting at least one application, and involving competing demands with a total combined value exceeding €2 billion. All applications were assessed in terms of their alignment with the intended purpose of the URDF programme and also their viability before being considered for approval. The 45 proposals approved in the second call in March 2021 build on the existing pipeline of URDF-supported projects launched under the first call. This URDF-supported programme of projects will ultimately contribute significantly to the transformative regeneration and development of our large towns and cities and to the achievement of the national planning framework and Project Ireland 2040 objectives.

Kildare County Council submitted four applications under the second call, three of which were successful, attracting a combined total €15,642,624 in URDF support. This URDF funding in the second call is in addition to €5.5 million already approved for four projects under the first call, bringing total URDF support for projects in Kildare County Council area to €21.1 million over both URDF calls. Kildare County Council's fourth proposal in respect of a second bridge over the River Liffey at Newbridge was one of 30 unsuccessful proposals. A copy of the detailed assessment of this proposal has been provided to Kildare County Council, and a feedback meeting on the matter has taken place between officials of the council and the Department. The ball is back in the court of Kildare County Council in terms of advancing the project further. Certainly the Department will give all support it can. I await the Senator's supplementary questions.