1804. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the strategies his Department has in place to protect the social and economic hubs that main streets represent in towns. [61371/26]

Launched in 2022, the Town Centre First (TCF) Policy Approach for Irish Towns is a joint initiative of my Department and the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht that aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into our town centres. TCF sets out a framework to facilitate and resource the regeneration of Irish towns to ensure they are vibrant, viable places to live, work, invest in, and visit.

The Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) co-ordinates stakeholder engagement at a national level and across local government while dedicated Town Regeneration Officers are working within local authorities in concert with the wider local authority teams focused on regeneration and town revitalisation.

Under the policy approach, local communities and businesses are enabled to form a local Town Team, supported by their Town Regeneration Officer and relevant Local Authority, to create a bespoke new Town Centre First Plan that sets out a unique vision for their town and contains proposals to guide and direct investment and maximise the particular strengths and assets of their town. Over 60 such TCF plans have been completed across the Country and these are now implemented through the local projects identified in the plans. Local authorities identify and nominate towns that receive supports under the funding measures and the relevant details are available on the website at https://towncentrefirst.ie/.

Importantly, the TCF approach is also underpinned by a broad range of capital funding streams across Government which have been aligned with the policy aims of TCF. These include the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, Built Heritage grants, the ERDF-funded THRIVE scheme to revitalise our heritage buildings and the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF). The experience of recent funding calls for proposals has shown that the TCF approach is having an impact, resulting in higher quality applications based on clear local input. The Programme for Government commits to the continued resourcing of the TCF model and to establish a Town Regeneration Team in every local authority.

In line with the agreed Programme for Government, on 5 March 2026, I announced a new Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund to replace the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund. Applying many of the key criteria established by Government in 2018 for the URDF, the fund will continue to deliver more compact and sustainable development through a programme of part-funding regeneration projects in Ireland’s five cities and other large towns. To date, there have been three rounds of funding provided under the former URDF which has resulted in the allocation of €1.9 billion of funding, with projects now active in every local authority area in the Country.

The Retail Planning Guidelines were issued as Ministerial Guidelines in 2012 recognising that the retail sector is a key component of the economy of towns throughout the country as a whole. The Guidelines aims to ensure that the planning system continues to play its role in supporting competitiveness and choice in the sector, while also promoting the vitality and viability of town and village centres. The Guidelines also recognise that retail development in smaller towns and villages serve their surrounding rural areas by providing a range of essential facilities and services.

The local authority development plan is the principal planning policy tool to achieve requirements of the Retail Guidelines at a local level. The Guidelines state that role of small towns and villages in the provision of retail services to their local urban and rural populations should be defined in development plans. The guidelines encourage local authorities to protect an appropriate level of retail provision in the rural area and recognises the need for small shops outside of settlements to serve dispersed populations. Appendix 2 of the Guidelines also contain a framework for assessing the vitality and viability of town centres via a ‘health check’ which will inform the retail strategy and development plan.