14. (1) The functions of the Agency shall, subject to this Act, include the following:

(a) to manage and develop certain relevant public land and prepare that land for development and, where necessary or expedient for that purpose, to so manage, develop and prepare other land which is contiguous to—

(i) relevant public land, or

(ii) land owned by the Agency,

to facilitate the provision of housing for the public good;

(b) to develop housing on relevant public land and, where necessary or expedient for that purpose, other land which is contiguous to—

(i) relevant public land, or

(ii) land owned by the Agency,

for the public good;

(c) to manage and to provide housing for rent or purchase;

(d) to ensure, or assist in, the timely provision of publicly owned infrastructure to service housing or sites being developed for housing on relevant public land and other land;

(e) to develop, or facilitate the development of, large-scale local authority sites for housing and, where appropriate, mixed-use development and for that purpose to liaise with any relevant local authority in relation to the appropriate mix of housing in such developments;

(f) to—

(i) appraise sites,

(ii) prepare masterplans,

(iii) prepare planning submissions for developments,

(iv) make a planning application, or intervene in a planning application made by another person, and

(v) obtain development consents, permissions and other approvals,

for the purpose of the development of relevant public land and, where necessary or expedient in order for that development to take place, the development of other land;

(g) to take measures to promote the sustainable development of communities and housing, including climate adaptive, low-carbon and affordable housing, that are well served by schools, infrastructure that promotes and facilitates cycling or walking, public transport and public amenities;

(h) to acquire relevant public land;

(i) to acquire and hold other land, and to dispose of land owned by the Agency, where to do so is necessary or expedient for the purposes of performing its functions;

(j) to enter into commercial contracts and other commercial arrangements (including joint ventures) with local authorities or other parties for the purposes of performing its functions;

(k) to support the implementation of the National Planning Framework;

(l) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (k), to advise the Government and, as appropriate, the Minister on the following in support of the implementation of the National Planning Framework:

(i) the management and use of relevant public land;

(ii) the provision of publicly owned infrastructure so that relevant public land and other land which is contiguous to relevant public land or land owned by the Agency can be further developed;

(m) to endeavour, having regard to the policy of the Government on proper planning and sustainable development—

(i) to contribute to the economic and social development of the State, and

(ii) to enhance the competitiveness of the economy of the State, including by encouraging innovation in housing design and construction methods and preparation of masterplans to ensure the effective use of land and, where appropriate, the application of such innovative methods;

(n) to create investment vehicles to facilitate the development of relevant public land and land owned by the Agency;

(o) to enter into commercial arrangements for the development of relevant public land and land that is privately owned in order to achieve the purposes of this Act and to expedite the provision of social and affordable housing.

(2) The Agency shall have all such powers as are necessary or expedient for the performance of its functions.

(3) The Agency, and any subsidiary DAC performing a function of the Agency, shall perform its functions in such a way as to ensure that where it engages in commercial activities there is no cross-subsidisation of such activities out of funding received for the purposes of carrying out public functions.

(4) In this section, “masterplan” means a plan prepared, or being prepared, by the Agency in respect of land proposed by the Agency to be developed on a significant scale as a single site, where the land includes one or more than one parcel of relevant public land and the Agency is of the view that the plan will assist in the best use of resources and delivery of economies of scale by the Agency in the performance of its functions.