Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent)
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668. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will consider proposals (details supplied) to adapt the hierarchy of settlements and related infrastructure outlined in Project Ireland 2040. [14696/21]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Across the EU, the European Commission classifies regions within the Union as either being a “Less Developed Region”, a “Transition Region” or a “More Developed Region”, based on their GDP per head of population relative to the EU27 Average. As the Deputy has identified, the Commission recently re-classified the Northern & Western Region from a “More Developed Region” to a “Transition Region” taking account of economic performance in recent years. Available data at the time estimated that the Northern & Western region’s GDP per capita was 85% of the EU average, while the region remained below 100% of the EU average in every year since 2007.

This re-classification of the Northern and Western Region by the Commission highlights the need for collective efforts by Government and others to ensure that the Northern and Western Region is supported in efforts to strongly grow and achieve its economic potential.  

Importantly, the Northern and Western Region is given specific focus in the National Planning Framework (NPF), due to the historically lower level of development and urbanisation compared to other regions, proximity to the border with Northern Ireland and risks associated with Brexit.  The NPF clearly recognises the importance of the future development of Ireland’s regions. To address this, in addition to Galway City, the NPF specifically identifies five regional and cross-border drivers, including Athlone, Sligo and Letterkenny in the Northern and Western Regional Assembly area.

The reference to ‘Ireland 2040: Our Plan’ in the question above appears to relate to an earlier 2017 draft version of the NPF, which did not include such drivers.  The final approved NPF strategy that was published in 2018 was revised in response to stakeholder and public consultaion to include enhanced provision for regional growth north of the Dublin-Galway ‘line’ and launched as part of ‘Project Ireland 2040’, which no longer included the ‘Our Plan’ title as referenced above.

Moreover, the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy (RSES) for the Northern and Western Regional Assembly area, approved further to the NPF in January 2020, includes a network of ‘key towns’ as a regional focus for growth, in addition in addition to Galway City, Athlone, Sligo and Letterkenny.  While equivalent in status to key towns in the Southern and Eastern and Midland Regions, the average size of the key towns in the NWRA not as large as those in the East and South, recognising the important sub-regional function and opportunities for growth in relatively smaller settlements in the North-West.

‘Closing the gap’ between the Northern and Western Region and Irelands other two regions, the Southern Region and the Eastern & Midlands Region, through sustainable regional development is therefore a primary aim of Project 2040 and wider Government policy.  Effectively accessing and utilising the national and EU funding supports available, such as the European Regional Development Fund, will assist in remedying infrastructural and other deficits over the next years and provide increased potential for the region to develop economic capacity and quality employment with such additional resources directed towards policies that have been proven to revitalise regional economies. I am satisfied that these measures will allow us to continue to develop the region to work towards achieving its potential in terms of economic and infrastructural development.