Mr. Eamonn Kelly:

I thank the Senator. I am more than happy to relay his comment to my colleagues in the planning and local government divisions. We all acknowledge that without proper enforcement the planning system will crumble. My colleagues are in frequent contact with our colleagues in the local authorities. I will certainly raise this point with them. It has come up before and I understand that it is being addressed not as part of this undertaking but as part of other work being done by the Department in the context of the wider funding issues in respect of local authorities. Therefore, I understand that this issue is being considered and I do not disagree at all with the Senator.