Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 October 2021
274. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when it can be expected that his Department will establish the maritime area regulatory authority that will be an important requirement of the Marine Area Planning Bill 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47827/21]
View answerThe Maritime Area Planning Bill 2021 (MAP Bill) seeks to establish a new marine planning system, underpinned by a statutory Marine Planning Policy Statement, guided by the National Marine Planning Framework, and consisting of a new licensing and development management regime from the high water mark to the outer limit of the State's continental shelf, administered by An Bord Pleanála, the coastal local authorities and a new agency, the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA).
I aim to establish MARA as soon as is practicable after the enactment of the MAP Bill, ideally within a period of twelve months. In order to ensure expediency in this regard I have tasked officials in my Department to prepare the groundwork for establishment including preparing a multi-annual budget for the agency, and to broadly look at human resource requirements. This is a work in progress and is being carried out in parallel to the passage of the Bill through the Houses of the Oireachtas.
