Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 238: To ask the Minister for Finance the role his Department will play in supervising delivery of the overall national development plan launched on 23 January 2007; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2249/07]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 239: To ask the Minister for Finance the areas of the new national development plan for which his Department has direct responsibility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2248/07]

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 241: To ask the Minister for Finance the role he played in formulating the national development plan; their role in implementing the plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2101/07]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 238, 239 and 241 together.

My Department was responsible, under the general direction of Government, for coordinating the preparation and drafting of the Plan. This included commissioning an ex ante evaluation of the investment priorities from the Economic and Social Research Institute. My Department also conducted a widespread consultation process that ensured that the social partners, regional bodies and other interest groups were given an opportunity to make submissions on their Plan priorities. As part of this consultation process, my Department held two separate consultation seminars, one in Dublin and one in Tullamore last year.

Overall coordination of monitoring and implementation of the Plan will be the responsibility of Sectoral Policy Division of my Department. In general, implementation of specific Plan investment at programme and project level will, in the first instance, be the responsibility of the relevant Government Departments and Agencies.

I will be establishing a Central Monitoring Committee to monitor the implementation of the Plan. The Committee, which will be chaired by my Department, will have representatives from: Government Departments and public bodies involved in the implementation of the Plan; the Regional Assemblies and Regional Authorities; the four pillars of Social Partnership; and appropriate representation from a relevant Government Department or an appropriate statutory body for both equal opportunity and environmental interests.

My Department will also coordinate the drafting of a focussed Plan reporting template that will be aimed at monitoring progress on Plan financial and physical outputs and outcomes and on progress on the horizontal themes of Regional Development, All-Island dimension and Environmental Sustainability. Reporting and monitoring of VFM for Plan investment will also be included. It is hoped to finalise this reporting and monitoring framework as early as possible this year.

My Department will also produce an annual report on implementation of the Plan that will be submitted to the Government and subsequently laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas where it shall be subject to debate. The first such report will be produced in 2008 in respect of 2007.