Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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56. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development her plans to bring forward a new rural development strategy as a successor to the Action Plan for Rural Development 2017-2020; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33689/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for Government committed to publishing and implementing a new Rural Policy to build on the progress of the Action Plan for Rural Development and to promote rural recovery and development in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. My Department is currently finalising this new policy, which will have a five year horizon.

The new policy will be forward-looking and ambitious. It will seek to strengthen and build resilience in our rural economies and communities and will identify policy measures for delivery in order to achieve these objectives.

The new policy will recognise that strong rural economies and communities are vital in supporting our national recovery and enhancing our nationwide wellbeing. It will also emphasise the interdependence between urban and rural areas in this regard. As was the case with the Action Plan for Rural Development, the new policy will reflect a whole-of-Government commitment to rural Ireland.

The process of developing the policy has included a wide range of consultation events with key stakeholders, including Government Departments, State agencies, rural stakeholder groups, young people, and the wider public. The insights and views captured through this extensive consultation process have helped to identify the issues that matter to people living and working in rural Ireland.

Over the past months, my Department has held a series of further discussions with key stakeholders to explore the short and longer-term impacts of COVID-19 on rural communities and economies and identify actions required to assist rural areas to recover from COVID-19. I hosted a public webinar on the topic on 24th September.

The inputs from these consultations are being factored in to the drafting of the policy and I anticipate that the final policy will be submitted to Government for approval in the near future, prior to its publication.