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For Oral Answer on : 14/10/2021
Question Number(s): 22,49,57,58,70 Question Reference(s): 50049/21, 50048/21, 49833/21, 50014/21, 49949/21
Department: Rural and Community Development
Asked by: David Stanton T.D., Claire Kerrane T.D., Colm Burke T.D., Jennifer Carroll MacNeill T.D.
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QUESTION
* To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development her plans to further encourage the establishment of remote working hubs in rural communities; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
– David Stanton T.D.
For ORAL answer on Thursday, 14 October, 2021.
* To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the level of support to be provided by her Department in 2021 for the development of remote working hubs; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
– David Stanton T.D.
For ORAL answer on Thursday, 14 October, 2021.
* To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the level of funding for remote digital hubs provided for in Budget 2021 that has been disbursed; if additional remote working hubs will be considered going forward in view of the fact that these facilities are vital for both urban and rural communities; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
– Colm Burke T.D.
For ORAL answer on Thursday, 14 October, 2021.
* To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the level of support for remote working hubs; the amount of 2021 funding that has been disbursed; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
– Jennifer Carroll MacNeill T.D.
For ORAL answer on Thursday, 14 October, 2021.
REPLY
Our Rural Future, Ireland’s Rural Development Policy 2021-2025, recognises the opportunity which remote working presents and also the potential of remote working hubs as key economic assets for our rural towns and villages.
My Department operates a number of funding schemes that focus on projects supporting remote working and that add to remote working infrastructure in every region. The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme both support the establishment of new digital hubs. In April, I announced funding of €81m for 25 landmark projects under the RRDF. Many of the successful projects involve the regeneration of historic town centre buildings as Enterprise and Co-Working Hubs. Support for new remote working hubs is also one of the areas being prioritised under my Department’s €15m 2021 Town and Village Renewal Scheme. The focus is on establishing new remote working facilities in town and village centres where properties are currently vacant or where existing community/ publicly owned buildings can be repurposed. This call closed to applications on 16 July 2021 and the assessment process is currently underway, with successful projects set to be announced by the end of the year.
In May I launched the National Connected Hubs network together with the connectedhubs.ie platform. This platform will offer a suite of booking, hub management and e-commerce applications to members of the Network. The National Hub Network Working Group initially identified and mapped over 400 remote working hubs. To date, approximately 146 hubs have joined the Connected Hubs Network and been on boarded onto the platform, with this number rising on an ongoing basis.
A significant number of initiatives will be developed through the Network including: supporting collective engagement between Connected Hubs and large scale employers; supporting collective engagement between Connected Hubs and Government agencies; and helping to identify the benefits Connected Hubs deliver for their local communities and the wider economy.
In July this year, through the Connected Hubs funding stream, I awarded €8.8 million in funding to over 100 successful applicants. This funding supports the addition of capacity to existing remote working infrastructure in digital hubs and broadband connection points throughout the country.
I am committed to continuing my Department’s support for the development of remote working hubs in recognition of the vital role that they can play in our post-Covid recovery.