Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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Question 958: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government when the €1 million required for the planning and design stage of Limerick regeneration will be forthcoming; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33210/09]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I refer to the reply to Questions Nos. 1037 and 1044 of 16 September 2009 regarding the Limerick Regeneration Programme, and my subsequent statement to the House as part of the adjournment debate on 23 September 2009. A Project Team, led by the Limerick Regeneration Agencies, was established in 2009 to deliver detailed plans for two new sheltered housing projects in Moyross and Ballinacurra Weston. Some €1.5 million is set aside in 2009 to meet these design costs and it is intended that priority projects in the Southill and St. Mary's Park areas will be added to the Project Team's remit.

The broader economic and employment situation in Limerick and the Mid-West region is under consideration in light of the Interim Report of the Mid-West Task Force. The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment published the Task Force's Interim Report on 28 July 2009 and the Government is now engaging in a cross-Departmental consultation process to evaluate and consider the implementation of the report's recommendations. The Report's recommendation that the implementation of the Limerick Regeneration Plan should be accelerated, and that expenditure of €1 million should be provided initially in order to accelerate the detailed planning and design process, will be considered in the context of that consultation process.