Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will speak specifically to the amendments and to the legislation. While I have some sympathy with amendments Nos. 155 and 156, I am not certain whether they should necessarily be included within the legislation. However, the guidelines adopted by local authorities when large-scale developments are put in place should have greater regard for community and social infrastructure.In fairness to most local authorities, they will conduct community and social audits. There are the requirements with regard to childcare which are placed on some of the larger developments. I think there can be even a negotiation with the Department of Education on school places, but in some of the guidelines, and this does vary from local authority to local authority, regard to the community and social infrastructure is also critical.

I reject, though, this idea that the Government is not investing in community, social and sporting infrastructure. This year alone, we will see, under the sports capital and equipment grant, €250 million invested, which is a record-breaking figure which exceeds the €163 million record-breaking figure which was invested two years ago. In addition this year, €120 million is being invested under the large-scale sporting infrastructure fund. My only question on that is whether or not it will be sufficient. What is critical is that, in the allocation of some of that funding, it is also lined up with local development plans and so on. This is less for the legislation but more in the community and social audits that local authorities will carry out, but sufficient regard should be had to the need for these facilities. In the same way that for large-scale developments we have particular requirements around childcare facilities and crèches, and there are some issues with those but I will not go into them, we need also to look at the community and social audit issue.

I have some sympathy with these amendments. In the guidelines that are issued to local authorities, this certainly varies from local authority area to local authority area. I am fortunate in Wexford in that when we look at large-scale developments there tends to be regard to the sporting infrastructure. The Minister will be familiar with the St. Waleran's development, in Gorey, for which large-scale housing development is planned. He will be glad to know that the sporting infrastructure within that has progressed far more quickly than some of the housing infrastructure. That is part of the overall planning guidelines being followed by the local authority. As I said, while I have some sympathy with the amendments, it would be important for the Minister to stress within the guidelines that are issued to local authorities how those local authorities should conduct their own community and social audits. It is not just about building lots of houses, as the Minister knows; it is about building communities and putting these facilities in place. We are doing that as a Government, but sometimes there is a need for a bit more joined up thinking between local authorities and different agencies.