Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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39. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation further to the confirmation by the IDA chief executive (details supplied) that over the past number of months there were concerns about a project in view of the time it was taking to get planning approval; when her attention was drawn to planning issues in this area since taking office; and the steps she took on receipt of this information with senior Department officials and Cabinet colleagues, including the Taoiseach, to ensure the project progressed and the investor did not pull out of the project . [47591/17]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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40. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the details of each occasion and date that a company (details supplied) raised the matter of the planning process for a project in Athenry since 2015 with her, her predecessor, the IDA and her Department; and the steps taken at Cabinet level to ensure the project was not lost. [47592/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 39 and 40 together.

In respect of the facility referred to by the Deputy, IDA Ireland has been engaged in ongoing discussions with the company involved. This included continuous engagement regarding the initial plans to situate the investment in Athenry and throughout the subsequent planning and legal processes. The Government has also regularly underlined its support for this valuable project, including at the Taoiseach's meeting with the company's senior management last week. Although it remains a commercial decision for the company itself to take, I am optimistic that the investment will proceed in the future. We will continue working with the company in support of that investment.

The delays that have beset this project have underlined the need to have an efficient and speedy planning process in place in this country. The Government wants to ensure that similar such projects are not unreasonably delayed again. That is why it had already been considering ways to avoid a repeat of this situation, including in advance of the recent High Court ruling. This may include the designation of data centres as Strategic Infrastructure Developments for planning purposes.