Mr. Dave Walsh:

I am here as chairperson of the board. The board's function is to decide as expeditiously as possible on planning applications that come before us. Five years is the normal life of a planning permission unless somebody looks to get it extended. In the context of the ongoing SHD review that the Minister has commissioned, they are looking at these issues and seeing if there are further measures and modifications, maybe not to the actual SHD process itself, in which the board is involved, but maybe other measures to encourage it. We have vacant site levies and other provisions within the national policy that aim to move serviced, vacant plots into early development or to penalise those who do not develop them.