Carol Nolan (Laois-Offaly, Independent)
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103. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he or his Department have given any policy consideration or conducted any analysis on the concept of the ’15 Minute City’; if he supports the general policy principle behind the concept; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15679/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The ‘15 minute city’ concept gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea of the 15-minute city has been championed in particular by the Paris Mayor, Anne Hidalgo, to promote communities that are designed to enable people to access most of their daily needs within a 15-minute walk or bike journey from their homes.

In the Irish context, planning through various national and regional polices has supported the creation of compact, mixed use and self-sustaining neighbourhoods for over two decades. Ministerial guidelines on residential density have been in place since 1999 and subsequent Ministerial Guidelines, including the Sustainable Residential Development in Urban Areas Guidelines 2009, have promoted the principles of the 15-minute city. There are a number of examples of developments in Ireland that have been planned from the outset to ensure that residents can access most of their daily needs within a 15-minuite walk or bike journey from their homes, reflecting Ministerial Guidelines. Early examples include the Dublin Docklands, Adamstown SDZ and Ashtown/Pelletstown.

My Department is currently preparing updated guidance for planning authorities on Sustainable and Compact Settlements that will update policy in relation to the creation of more compact and integrated forms of development in cities, towns and villages in order to meet population growth in a more sustainable manner. I will publish a consultation paper in the coming days outlining the proposed policy approach and invite submissions from the public in relation to the proposed policy approach. Details in this regard will be published on my Department’s website.

My Department is further assisting the formation of well-connected, mixed use and compact urban clusters in cities and towns nationally via funding mechanisms such as the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF). URDF has funded projects that support compact growth and sustainable mobility in a number of urban areas including Cork City Docklands, Limerick Georgian Core and Waterford North Quays.