Rural Ireland plan ‘a well-packaged marketing exercise’

An Taoiseach Micheál Martin, An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys, and Minister for Transport and the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan at the launch of  'Our Rural Future – Rural Development Policy 2021-2025' at Croke Park yesterday. Picture: Julien Behal

The Government's new rural Ireland plan has been dubbed a "very well packaged marketing exercise" after it was claimed it contains no new spending, targets or ideas.

The 'Our Rural Future' development policy contains 150 actions to encourage people to live and work in rural Ireland. However, the Taoiseach admitted that the plan is a "broad strategic framework", and costings and timeframes for many of the measures have yet to be worked out.