Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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42. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht her views on the benefits of investing in recreation infrastructure in rural counties; the way in which this will help to attract more visitors to rural areas such as counties Sligo and Leitrim; if her Department will run a rural recreation programme in 2017; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11549/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Activity and recreational tourism is a growth sector worldwide and the range of activities, volume of participants and number of providers of recreational tourism in Ireland have all increased in recent years. The development and promotion of this sector will provide opportunities for economic growth and jobs in rural areas in particular, by facilitating businesses to leverage their local tourism assets to support activities such as canoeing, cycling, angling, surfing, and hill walking.

The Government’s Action Plan for Rural Development, which was published in January, contains a number of specific measures for delivery by a range of Departments and agencies to develop and promote activity tourism in rural areas.

For example, I will be providing funding of €7 million this year through the Rural Recreation Scheme for new recreational infrastructure and the maintenance of existing infrastructure.  The scheme will be opened for applications shortly and all counties, including Sligo and Leitrim, will be invited to submit applications.

My Department will work with Waterways Ireland and Fáilte Ireland to develop and promote Blueways on the Royal Canal, Grand Canal and Barrow Canal and on the Shannon navigation, with a capital investment of €6 million over the period 2017-2019.

My Department will also develop a Public Outdoor Recreation Amenities Plan, in association with a number of State agencies, to transform the provision of outdoor recreation facilities and services on public-owned land and waterways over the next five years.

I am confident that investment in the infrastructure that supports recreational activities in this growing sector will bring tangible benefits for those living in rural Ireland in terms of increased tourist numbers and job opportunities. For example, the Blueway Flagship Initiative, which was launched in June 2016, is bringing tourism to the rural areas of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford and Roscommon, by connecting 22 towns and villages along the River Shannon and the Shannon-Erne Waterway, through a Blueway.