David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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101. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if her Department is exploring the possibility of establishing longer-term agreements between businesses and remote working hubs to enable more structured remote working schedules; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17959/22]

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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964. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if her Department is exploring the possibility of longer-term agreements between businesses and hubs to enable more structured remote working, particularly in rural communities; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18079/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 101, 958 and 964 together.

The National Hub Network currently comprises 223 remote and co-working facilities across the State. These facilities have been onboarded to connectedhubs.ie, the shared online platform that handles bookings and payments for member hubs and their users.

It is expected that, in time, the National Hub Network and the connectedhubs.ie platform will include more than 400 facilities.

I have been clear throughout my tenure as Minister for Rural and Community Development that balanced regional development, sustainable and thriving communities, and indeed the wider national economy will all benefit from workers and employers embracing the remote working revolution.

At this stage of the development of the hub sector, particularly in rural areas, there is still a strong focus on the individual remote worker. Pricing plans are constructed with affordability for the worker in mind and bookings are, in general, made by the individual.

However, and as the Deputy will be aware, there are significant opportunities for employers of all sizes to leverage the National Hub Network directly. More workers than ever are expressing a preference for remote work and more employers, noting the strong professional performance of so many remote workers, see their own interests reflected in the those of their employees.

The connectedhubs.ie team have for some time been developing a corporate service to engage with and support corporate clients interested in using our nationwide network to accommodate their employees, but also to gain access to the vast pool of talent that Ireland has to offer, whether those talented people live in our cities, towns, villages or rural parishes.

I will monitor the development of the corporate service with interest, as I believe this represents another great step forward for the National hub Network.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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102. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the status of the connected hubs fund; and the number of applications that have been received. [17863/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Our Rural Future, Ireland’s Rural Development Policy 2021-2025, recognises the potential of remote working hubs as key economic assets for our rural towns and villages. Notwithstanding the clear benefits to individuals and families in terms of quality of life indicators, remote working from hubs will also support local economies, reduce carbon emissions and may arrest or reverse the depopulation of certain areas.

Last May, I launched the National Connected Hubs network together with the connectedhubs.ie platform. The platform offers a suite of booking and hub management applications to members of the Network. There are currently 223 hubs live on the platform, with this number increasing on an ongoing basis.

In 2021, under the first Connected Hubs Call, almost €9 million was awarded to more than 100 remote and co-working hubs, including a significant number of public Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) throughout the country. This funding mechanism is designed to ensure additional capacity and improved facilities and to support the long-term viability of existing hubs.

In February, I announced a further €5 million for the sector under the 2022 Connected Hubs Call. The call closed to applications at 6pm yesterday evening, Monday 4th April. My officials are currently evaluating the applications submitted and I expect to announce the successful applicants in the next few weeks.

Details of all these schemes and successful applications will be available at www.gov.ie.

The development of a National Hubs Network is a key commitment in Our Rural Futureand I am committed to continuing my Department's support for the ongoing development of a comprehensive and integrated network of remote working hubs in recognition of the vital role that they can play in our post-Covid recovery.