Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have two questions for the board and two questions for the Department. The core objective of SHDs was always the speedier delivery of housing in a more streamlined way. I ask the representatives of the board how many of the 40,000 residential units approved have been delivered. The Department has said that 29% of permissions have been activated, but how many physical homes have been delivered through the SHD process? Is An Bord Pleanála's 30% refusal rate in line with the local authority rate? I am just trying to get a sense as to whether it remains the same kind of standard between the local authorities and the board.

My first question for the Department relates to something Deputy McAuliffe has mentioned, which is height. I would like to reference the Vincent Byrne site in Palmerstown where approval was granted for apartment blocks of eight storeys in a village where the residential character of the village is really two-storey housing. This comes back to the point already made, and I know Mr. Hogan has taken it up already, around the board needing to have regard to the development plan rather than a requirement of being consistent with it. I know Mr. Hogan has already addressed some of the rationale behind this, but really I am trying to get a sense of whether the Department is happy that this works or whether it has recommendations in respect of that element.

In terms of the Department's use it or lose it recommendation, I would like to clarify if the Department is recommending use it or lose it from 2022 onwards if SHDs have not been ended by then. I would be a bit more comfortable if it was possible, and I do not know if it is, for us to introduce a measure like that sooner rather than later, perhaps not retrospectively for applications that are already granted but for applicants in the process and moving forward.

Could technical legislation be brought forward to allow for this? We could all be in a much better position in a couple of months or in a year to decide whether to look at a potential extension of this or retire the scheme based on the new clause. With at least a year out, we have identified that this is something that could definitely enhance the scheme. Could we do that now? Why should we wait when we are already considering abandoning SHDs?