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Infrastructure, Public Utilities and Spatial Developmentna Gaeltachta, the Western Development Commission and ShannonDevelopment. An increasingly strategic role is necessary forplanning and in particular planning for major infrastructuralprojects. However, it is clear that this needs to be informed by localcommunities and by those at local government level. This isnecessary to ensure that we achieve communities which areinclusive, deliver social cohesiveness and contribute to overalleconomic and social objectives in an environmentally sustainablemanner. The Council believes that the County Development Boardshave an important role to play in this regard. However, there is aneed to clarify the relationship between local and regional actors,such as the CDBs and the GDA, and that of national government.In particular, the Council calls for a much more structured set ofguidelines setting out national planning policy in relation tosustainable settlement patterns, settlement density, rural dwellings,set in the context of NSS. Meanwhile, infrastructure and otherdevelopments of national importance should be decided upon at anational level while preserving a degree of local accountability.9.11.2 Institutions for Utility RegulationIn a world of perfect competition the behaviour of firms competingin the marketplace would deliver market outcomes which useresources efficiently. In a world of perfect information, public policyand regulation could be administered by a system of completecontracts which would cover every possible contingency. However,given incomplete contracting and imperfect competition, policy fornetwork utilities must address three key questions (Newbery, 1999).Firstly, how do we ensure that large amounts of specific sunk capitalare financed, and specifically, how are property rights in this capitalto be defined, allocated and protected? Secondly, we must addressthe appropriate industry structure, both horizontally and vertically, ifnetwork utilities are to be liberalised in the long run consumerinterest. These questions are concerned with issues of forwardlooking or dynamic adjustment and efficiency, and are often set outin the legislative framework that governs regulation and are,therefore, subject to infrequent updating or adaptation. The third key513