asked the Minister for Local Government if his attention has been drawn to a statement contained in the Donegal Regional Development Organisation Report to the effect that the population of County Donegal will drop by 20,000 unless new jobs are provided; and if, in view of this, he will explain what policies he has for the creation of 2,300 new jobs in each of the five year periods between now and 1986.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - County Donegal Employment.
37.
The report of the Donegal Regional Development Organisation, recently published, was prepared in response to a request to the regional development organisations generally to prepare a survey and assessment of development problems and potentials in their regions.
The conclusions and recommendations in these reports are entirely the responsibility of the boards of the organisations. I should like to stress that these reports are in the nature of surveys; they were never intended to assume the status of plans. These advisory reports from the regions have been made available to the Industrial Development Authority and other bodies concerned with regional development and economic expansion and are being considered in the regional planning review as envisaged in the statement on regional policy issued by the Government on 19th May, 1969
When the Minister states that they are not acceptable as being policy is he dismissing them as being utter nonsense?
I did not say that at all.
What did the Minister say?
I said that the reports would be regarded as surveys and that they would be availed of in an advisory capacity in drawing up regional plans as envisaged in the policy statement enunciated by the Government on 19th May, 1969.
In actual fact then they are only paying lip service.
They have done very valuable work.
Everyone agrees they have done valuable work. As a result of their findings what does the Minister propose to do now?
As I have told the House before, all the reports from all the regions are not yet in.
My question relates to Donegal.
That is one of the regions. All the regions have not yet submitted their final reports. When all the reports are in, the regional committee will report to me and, arising out of the consideration given to the report which will be drawn up, the Government will finally decide on the regional policy to be put before the people. These reports will help in devising that policy. They are advisory documents. They are not plans in themselves.
We can take it then that this report by the Donegal regional organisation is shelved in the Minister's Department.
It certainly is not.
Pigeonholed.