By Joleen Murphy
400 remote working hubs are to be set up across the country to encourage people to leave cities to live in towns and villages.
Relocation grants and tax incentives for remote working are also being considered by Government.
The 'Our Rural Future' plan will also offer grants to publicans to convert their pub into a part-time community space.
Speaking to Beat Carlow-Kilkenny TD John Paul Phelan says the pandemic has created new ways of working for good.
"Some of the effects are good and some some of the effects are not good.
"Now it might not be the case that they can remote work full time' but even if they can remote work for two or three days a week, that really has the ability to transform all aspects of our lives."
He says the pandemic has presented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"That kind of two to four hours commute that some people have every day, from the South East region and other parts of the country, in to Dublin and greater Dublin is gone.
"They'll need that secure broadband link and that is why it's so important.
"And that's why its not just once in a lifetime, it's a once in several lifetimes
"What we are going through at the moment with Covid, it has opened up new ways of doing business into the future."
The Government has defended the absence of targets and funding allocations for its new rural development plan.
The strategy aims to encourage people to move out of cities and work remotely from towns and villages.
Workers will be offered relocation grants and more remote working hubs will be set up nationwide.
Taoiseach Michael Martin says it's not possible to say how much the grants or tax breaks will be worth.
The value of relocation grants and tax incentives to encourage people to move from cities to rural areas won't be revealed until budget 2022.
