Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 May 2017
751. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the status of the Atlantic economic corridor and the role the Western Development Commission will play in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20352/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Programme for a Partnership Government and the Action Plan for Rural Development both contain a commitment to progressing the concept of an Atlantic Economic Corridor which was proposed in February 2016 by a group involving a number of Chambers of Commerce in the Western region and the American Chambers of Commerce of Ireland.
The Atlantic Economic Corridor proposal aims to contribute to effective regional development by creating sufficient scale along the western part of Ireland to match other regions – and particularly the East coast - in attracting Irish and multinational investment, growing jobs and supporting vibrant local communities.
Towards the end of last year I, along with officials from my Department, held a number of meetings with public bodies and with representatives from the Chambers group to further explore the proposal.
On foot of these discussions, I established an Atlantic Economic Corridor Taskforce in March and chaired the first meeting of the group in Castlebar. The Taskforce contains senior representatives from key Government Departments and other public bodies, Universities and Institutes of Technology, and representatives from the Chambers Group.
A number of sub-groups of the Taskforce have been established to progress aspects of the overall proposal. The Western Development Commission is represented on the Taskforce and also on one of the sub-groups which is mapping out the EU funding which may be available to support the development of the Western region.
I intend to convene a further meeting of the Taskforce in the coming weeks to review progress.
As the Deputy will be aware, the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, is currently leading the preparation of a new National Planning Framework, Ireland 2014, on behalf of the Government. The National Planning Framework will be a high-level document that will provide the framework for future development and investment in Ireland. It will also be a tool to assist the achievement of more effective regional development. It will be important to ensure that the development of the Atlantic Economic Corridor concept is consistent with the National Planning Framework.
