Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 8 March 2023
113. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage further to Parliamentary Question No. 90 of 26 January 2023, the status of the development of the promised section 28 guidelines for planning in Gaeltacht areas; the status of the screening assessments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11939/23]
View answerAn Interdepartmental Group (comprising officials from my Department; the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts Gaeltacht, Sport and Media; and Údarás na Gaeltachta) is in place to support and accelerate the ongoing work in relation to planning in Gaeltacht areas.
One of the key aims of this group is to ensure that procedures and systems will be tailored, as appropriate to facilitate an effective and consistent approach by the relevant local authorities in managing planning related issues in Gaeltacht areas.
The Interdepartmental Group has been examining how current practices in the application of these provisions could be strengthened in the overall interest of the Irish language in the Gaeltacht and in the interests of proper planning and sustainable development, underpinned by a policy being finalised by the Department Tourism, Culture, Arts Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. This policy is critical to the development of the Section 28 Guidelines for planning in Gaeltacht Areas, which my Department is in the process of finalising a draft for my review.
Once draft guidelines are finalised they must then be subject to screening for Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), as well as for the purposes of Appropriate Assessment (AA). Subject to the completion of the screening assessments, a draft of the guidelines will be published for public consultation in Q2 2023.
