45126-Invest. Qual-No111

Investment in Qualitydesignation of selected settlements, but encompasses the interrelationshipsand infrastructural provision between designatedcentres of development and their supporting hinterlands. The NSSdoes not seek to prescribe an exact formula for each centre’sdevelopment, nor does it purport to suggest that all such designatedcentres should be treated in the same manner.Economic activity, investment and job creation represent the mostsignificant influence on spatial patterns. Accordingly, the location,concentration and distribution of economic activity will have acrucial bearing on the ability of the NSS to achieve balanced spatialdevelopment. Those areas designated for development will need tobe supported by all relevant stakeholders to help foster clusters ofeconomic activity which may give rise to spill-over benefits forboth firms and workers.Combined with the economic and education spheres, social andcultural factors providing a good overall quality of life areimportant elements which determine what makes an area attractiveto live and work in. The NSS sets out key considerations forevaluation and priorities with respect to housing development tomeet the needs of local communities, while balancing the needs ofsociety as a whole, and establishes a hierarchy of access to socialinfrastructure that will help foster social capital and give thegreatest access to the greatest number of services in the most costeffective manner.The Council welcomes the focus of the Strategy on a limitednumber of key development centres supported by regional and localdevelopment plans. While it would be possible to be more selectivethe Council recognises that there is significant dispersion and lowdensity of settlement in Ireland and that the networks for interconnectivitybetween settlements are weak, and these will havebeen key considerations in arriving at the designated settlements.In providing infrastructure to facilitate development of particulartowns, there can arise a kind of ‘chicken and egg’ problem: it is hardfor the town to develop high technology industry and services untilthe infrastructure is in place and it is hard to justify heavy448