At a special event today, Saturday, on Sherkin Island, An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney T.D., in conjunction with the Government Chief Whip and Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands, Seán Kyne T.D. will launch a consultation process aimed at formulating a new national policy for the future development of the islands.
This will be the first cross-Government policy developed for the islands in 23 years and will set a roadmap for the long-term sustainability and development of our offshore communities. The voices and views of islanders will be central to the process. Consultation workshops will be held with island communities over the next three months, allowing local groups and individuals to have a direct input as the policy is developed.
The Government believes that our coastal islands are an integral part of our cultural heritage. Sustainable, vibrant communities are the bedrock of our islands, and the new policy will seek to improve the quality of life of these communities, taking into account the unique context of each island. As part of the policy, a system of reporting and review will be developed to promote accountability.
Launching the consultation process An Tánaiste, Simon Coveney TD, said:
We have seen significant capital investment on the islands in recent years but we need this consultation to ensure communities are supported in a sustainable way into the future. Our islands are a unique asset and there are many different stories of new industry and tourism that have been successfully developed on some islands. We now need to hear from our island communities on what enterprise, education and unique supports they need.
Minister of State Seán Kyne TD, when addressing the event, added:
I am delighted to launch this important consultation process today. The launch marks the first part of a process which will encompass consultation with both island communities and other stakeholders, input from which will feed into a cross-Government national policy for the sustainable development of the islands.
Over the past 20 years, over €100 million has been invested by the state in capital infrastructure on the islands aimed at implementing the recommendations contained in the last Inter-Departmental Islands Committee. This new process presents both Government and island communities with an opportunity to take stock of what has been achieved and to develop plans for a sustainable future over the years ahead.
Notes to Editors:
More information on the Consultation Process:
There are approximately 30 inhabited islands around Ireland, predominantly off the Western counties including Cork, Donegal, Galway and Mayo. A central objective of both Government and the Department of Culture Heritage and the Gaeltacht is to ensure that sustainable vibrant communities continue to live on the islands.
In October, the Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands, Seán Kyne convened the first meeting of a new interdepartmental committee on island development which comprises representatives from government departments and is tasked with developing the first, whole-of-government national policy for off-shore island in over 23 years.
Consultation with island communities is central to the development of the new national policy. The consultation process will involve engaging with islanders through community meetings and an open call for submissions and observations to formulate an offshore islands policy and action plan, including, but not limited to, the areas of housing, health, energy, waste management, climate change, education, communication, employment and transport.
A discussion document has been designed to outline the island specific policies that are already in place across Government, and provides a proposed basis for discussions to be held with our island communities.
Workshops will be held with the island communities, seeking to identify policies or actions that should be developed in order to support, sustain and develop these communities. This process should also serve to identify synergies of policy and services between the participating Government Departments and other stakeholder bodies, thereby to better serve our island communities by addressing the particular challenges they face.
The consultation workshops will be organised in collaboration with local island organisations and promoted widely so that a broad spectrum of the island community can attend and participate. The consultation process will inform the State's approach to developing public policy in relation to island communities and will be based on principles of equality, partnership and full participation of the island communities.
The terms of reference of the Interdepartmental Islands Committee:
The Committee, in close consultation with individual island communities and Comhdháil Oileáin na hÉireann/the Irish Islands Federation, will:
In relation to island life in general:
- Identify the main challenges faced by communities living on the offshore islands;
In relation to public policy:
- identify areas of public policy which can best support the sustainable development of island communities;
- identify best practice as regards public policy affecting island communities, including public policy applying in other EU member states.
In relation to delivery of public services:
- review the delivery of public services to the offshore islands;
- identify gaps in those public services and potential synergies between Government Departments and agencies with regard to their provision;
As regards the future:
- develop a suite of recommendations with regard to issues coming to light as a result of the work carried out in relation to paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 above, aimed at developing a Cross-Government Policy on Island Development.
- seek Government approval to publish the Cross-Government Policy on Island Development which will include the Committees recommendations as regards public service delivery and future policy.
Following approval by Government of the aforementioned policy document, develop an Action Plan for the implementation of the Committee’s recommendations and oversee its implementation, while reporting to Government, at intervals to be agreed.