I propose to take Questions Nos. 243 to 245, inclusive, together.
Project Ireland 2040 signals a significant policy shift towards securing more compact and sustainable urban and rural development, which requires significantly more effective land management in key development areas.
Against that background, it is proposed to establish a National Regeneration and Development Agency to assist in ensuring a more effective approach to strategic land management, particularly in terms of publicly owned land.
The Agency will act as a national centre of expertise, working with and supporting local authorities, public bodies and other interests, to harness public lands as catalysts to stimulate regeneration and wider investment and to achieve compact, sustainable growth, with a particular emphasis on complex regeneration projects.
The detailed arrangements in relation to the establishment of the Agency are currently being worked on by my Department, in conjunction with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, with a view to their finalisation as quickly as possible. These discussions will inform the designing of the functions, resource needs, budgetary requirements and location of the Agency, once it is established.