Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 September 2018
704. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the capital allocation for the rural regeneration and development fund in each of the years 2019 to 2023; the projects this fund will contribute towards; the location of each; and the function, commencement, completion dates and annual costs of each. [37238/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Development Plan provides for an allocation of €1 billion for the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund to enable towns, villages and outlying rural areas to grow sustainably and support delivery of the strategic objectives of the National Planning Framework. Initial funding of €315 million is being allocated to the Fund over the period 2019 to 2022 on a scaled basis.
On July 4th, I announced a first call for proposals under the Fund and invited submissions under two categories:
Category 1: “Ready-to-Go” proposals, or initial phases of projects which can be commenced in 2019, which have the necessary consents (e.g., planning) in place, are at an advanced stage of design, are in a position to satisfy value-for-money requirements in accordance with the Public Spending Code, and are procurement-ready.
Category 2: Proposals that have clear potential and quantifiable objectives but require further development to enable them to be potentially submitted as Category 1 proposals in subsequent funding calls.
The deadline for the receipt of applications under the first call for proposals is 27 September 2018.
The initial announcement of approved projects will be made in November 2018 following the assessment process, and approved projects will commence in early 2019. A further call for proposals will be announced in mid-2019.
Further details of the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund are available on my Department's website.
