Ireland 2040 – Our Plan
National Planning Framework (NPF)
Arts Council Conference 12th January 2016
Department of Housing, Planning, Community
and Local Government
Introduction
The National Planning Framework
(NPF) will be the successor to the
2002 National Spatial Strategy (NSS)
Horizon: 2040 - concise High-level,
strategic document
Co-ordination - spatial aspect of Co-ordination - spatial aspect of
Government policy
Developed in parallel with 3x Regional
Spatial and Economic Strategies by the
new Regional Assemblies
NPF+RSES - strong basis for more
joined-up policies and therefore more
effective planning, investment and
decision-making
NationalNational
NPF
Regional
Spatial and Economic Strategy
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Planning Policy Hierarchy, Ireland 2016
Local Area Plans/
Area Based Local Development
Local Economic and
Community Plans
City and County
Development PlansStr
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Opportunity & Challenges
� What should Ireland look like by 2040 bearing in mind that over the next 20+ years we must plan for up to 1m extra people, min +0.5m extra homes and over 2.2m jobs?
� Current trends – location of employment is concentrating yet housing dispersing, population ageing, challenges public infrastructure and service delivery, ensuring quality of life and international environmental quality objectives (zero-carbon by 2050)
� NPF essential to ensure sustainable development as highlighted in Programme for Government, Action Plan for Housing, Planning Policy Statement
� To work, NPF must be backed by wider policy alignment of investment, planning, economic development and environmental strategies
� NPF to have statutory backing under Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2016 and must comply with EU Environmental Directives (Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats)
Experience & Ambition
� NSS offers invaluable learning experience - expert advisory group
report 2014 recommended a more strategic approach and dealing
with “hard choices”
� Prelim Census 2016 – growth happening outside our key cities and
towns, tendency towards increasing urban vacancy & for
development, rather than plan-led infrastructure provision i.e. sprawl
outside cities and townsoutside cities and towns
� NPF must be different:
� Whole of Oireachtas and rolling Government buy-in
� Harness each region’s differing potential and avoiding ‘winners’
and ‘losers’ while also not treating all regions or settlements in
the same way
� Ireland 2040/NPF must, through an evidence-base, establish a place-
making vision that people will understand as a “plan” that is realistic,
responsive to their needs and adaptable over time
Project
Governance1) 2) Communication
& Consultation
Key Areas of NPF Work Programme
3) 4) Environmental
Assessment
Framework
Development
Governance and Oversight
NPF Cross Departmental
Steering GroupNPF Advisory Group
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ns Minister for Housing,
Planning, Community and
Local Government
Government
Oireachtas
NPF Advisory Group
NPF Team
Working Groups
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Demographic and
Econometric Group
Environmental
Group
Regional Assemblies
Group
DHPCLG Working
Group
Additional working groups may be formed as the project progresses
Communication & Consultation
Initial High-Level Engagement (July)
Local Authorities and a range of other infrastructure, economy, society and
environmental stakeholders
Pre-Draft Consultation (Jan 2017)
National campaign, supported by website
and ‘issues and choices’ position paperand ‘issues and choices’ position paper
• Posing key questions, scenarios, options
• Local engagement and inputs
Draft NPF Consultation (Q2 2017)
To enable submissions on the Draft NPF prior
to final drafting and decision-making stages
10 Key Questions
1. What should Ireland look like in 20 years?
2. How do we ensure that every place can realise its potential?
3. Where will jobs be located and what kind of jobs will they be?
4. Where will we live and what types of housing will be needed?
5. What are the key services that people will need? 5. What are the key services that people will need?
6. Where will Ireland fit in a wider (geographical) context?
7. What are the planning responses to key environmental challenges?
8. What infrastructure is required – what are the national priorities?
9. How should a National Planning Framework be implemented?
10.What will success look like?
Framework Development Influences
Stakeholder and public ideas
Good examples from other
administrations (Scottish NPF
adopted by Scottish Parliament)
ESRI working with DHPCLG onESRI working with DHPCLG on
� Demographic and Econometric
modelling and projections
� Development and testing of
alternative scenarios
Expert environmental assessments
underway
AIRO (NUIM) spatial data/mapping
Environmental Assessment
Stage 1:
Screening SEA & AA
Scoping workshop
SEA Scoping Report
Key Stages and Outputs
Stage 2:
SEA Alternatives
SEA Env Report
AA Screening &/or NIS
Stage 3:
Final SEA Statement
Final NISSEA Scoping Report
Pre-draft SFRA
AA Screening &/or NIS
Draft SFRA
Management Plan
Final NIS
Final SFRA
Management Plan
Current Status:
Consultants (RPS) appointed to carry out the integration of environmental
considerations (SEA, AA & SFRA) into the NPF process
Strategic IssuesDo we follow ‘Business as Usual’ or Influence a new pattern?
1: Planning for People - Society and Quality of Life
2: A Place-Making Strategy• A Vision for our Capital, our Cities and Towns
• Key strengths and opportunities for our Regions
• A future for Rural Ireland
• Ireland in an All-Island Context• Ireland in an All-Island Context
• Realising opportunities for integrated land and marine
development
3: Equipping Ireland for Future Development – Infrastructure
4: Making a virtue out of Ireland’s unique environment -
sustainability
5: Implementation and Delivery – making sure NPF is driven
Policy Choices
� ‘Business as Usual’ undesirable - will not deliver competitiveness,
QoL, BRD, climate change objectives, cost to State;
� Previous success – investment/policy led, Inter-urban motorway
programme; Temple Bar/Dublin Docklands; Wild Atlantic Way
� Trends are telling us that a ‘New Direction’ is required - Policy and
Investment led;Investment led;
� Harnessing metropolitan/city element likely to be key, must also
address regional and rural potential;
� Currently seeking to identify and test alternatives to business as
usual;
� Will feed into Capital Plan review.
Project Timetable
� Currently finalising ‘Issues and Options’ paper and Communications
Strategy
� Pre-Draft Consultation – launch January 2017, submissions to end
Feb
� Draft NPF for further consultation – Q2 2017
� Final draft for approval – Possible Summer 2017
Contact Details
Paul Hogan, NPF Project Manager/Senior Planning
Adviser - [email protected]
Alma Walsh, Planning Adviser
[email protected]@housing.gov.ie
Colm McCoy, Planning Adviser
Website: [email protected]