A comprehensive profile of the counties that make up the Greater Dublin Region (Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow) has been published by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) as an aid to Government decision-making under the National Development Plan. It is an important contribution to policy debate and should help to minimise the kinds of haphazard planning and speculative development that have done so much to generate bottlenecks and damage the quality of life for many citizens.
The report found that while Dublin had benefitted from tremendous economic growth in recent years, the standard of output per capita in the adjoining counties of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow was still lagging, in spite of more rapid population growth. It attributed this to more people commuting to Dublin from homes built in largely rural areas. Commuters spent a large proportion of their income in Dublin, added to transport costs and traffic congestion and had difficulty in integrating into their local communities. In addition, commuters did not generate output locally or encourage the development of existing urban centres. The report urged that future residential development outside Dublin city should be concentrated in existing urban centres in order to allow for the efficient provision of public services and to reduce traffic flows. Industry and services should be fostered in the larger urban centres to encourage self-sustaining industrial growth. Social, recreational and cultural facilities should be provided.
The depth and range of the material provided in the report will provide a solid basis for forward economic and social planning. One of the more interesting findings in relation to Dublin showed a high proportion of people aged 50 years and over living in centre city areas, which will have short-term implications for the provision of nursing homes and other health services. In the same way, findings in relation to the population of young children in particular areas will impact on school needs. An overview of unemployment and disadvantage will impact directly on social planning. Areas of high unemployment, such as Tallaght and Clondalkin, were found also to be areas of poor educational attainment, with a high incidence of single mothers and concentrations of people in lower occupational or social groups. Because deprivation appeared to be concentrated in certain areas, the report urged that the Government's policy response should be equally specific.
The document went on to urge higher density residential development wherever new schemes were planned for Dublin city or where there was scope for redevelopment in areas of low density. This, however, did not imply that high-rise development should be pursued. It urged the introduction of road pricing - a charge on cars using certain roads - as a means of encouraging people to use public transport and of directing business and development to certain toll-free, designated areas. Given the proximity of a general election and the likely storm of resistance from motorists, however, such a charge is unlikely to be viewed as a priority by the Government.
The need for comprehensive, long-term planning has been emphasised by the results of a quarterly national household survey conducted by the Central Statistics Office. It showed that employment in the past year grew by 59,300 to 1.7 million while the level of unemployment fell to 65,000 persons, or 3.7 per cent of the workforce. The unemployment figure was a record low of 2.6 per cent for Dublin. The level of growth and job creation has been flattening out, but it is still well above the EU rate. Estimates for economic growth exceed an average of 5 per cent over the next number of years.