Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 31 January 2017
424. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the manner in which the Action Plan for Rural Development will impact on County Meath; and the way in which it will affect and improve broadband in rural County Meath. [4345/17]
View answerThe Action Plan for Rural Development provides a framework of supports to improve the lives of people who live and work in rural Ireland. It is the first Plan of its kind to address both the economic and social needs of rural Ireland through a whole-of-Government approach. The Plan contains over 270 actions, all of which aim to support rural communities throughout the country. These actions are spread over five thematic pillars aimed at:
- Supporting Sustainable Communities,
- Supporting Enterprise and Employment,
- Maximising our Rural Tourism and Recreation Potential,
- Fostering Culture and Creativity in rural communities, and
- Improving Rural Infrastructure and Connectivity.
Initiatives under the Plan will be rolled out by various Government Departments and State agencies, and will benefit all rural communities, including those in Co. Meath.
One of the objectives outlined in the Action Plan for Rural Development is to bring high speed broadband to every premises in Ireland through the rollout of the National Broadband Plan (NBP). Under the NBP, 1.4m premises in Ireland now have access to high speed broadband, with investment by telecoms companies continuing. The Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment is in a procurement process to bring high speed broadband to those premises where services will not be provided by telecoms companies. In tandem with this, the Government is taking immediate steps to accelerate and facilitate the rollout of broadband and mobile phone services by implementing the recommendations of the report of the Taskforce on Mobile Phone and Broadband Access which was published last December.
Full details of these actions are contained in the Action Plan for Rural Development, which is available on www.ruralireland.ie.
