Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 19 October 2021

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

Maritime Area Planning Bill 2021: Committee Stage

Photo of Richard Boyd BarrettRichard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I do not accept the Minister of State's answer because there is a difference between two things. One is that the information is available if people go looking for it. They can go looking on the lobbying register, which most people probably do not know how to do, or they can go looking via freedom of information, which is hassle for people. They can find it and it is possible, but it is hassle. However, if we make a decision on this critical issue of the development of our marine environment in terms of policy, policy statements, guidelines, consents and anything to do with that, it will be a matter of course that attached to those things will be a detailing of all representations that were made. It is just there for people. They do not have to go searching for it and they do not have to wait for some Government Department to come back to them or possibly strike out bits. It is just there. There is a difference. I do not accept the Minister of State's response. While I accept people can do what he says they can do, this is doing something different. This is just making it readily and easily available, transparent and visible.

I do not see that it is a very difficult thing to do and, in fact, it is quite an easy thing to do. As Deputy Ó Broin said, we will all be lobbying on various aspects of these things, so the Deputies who lobbied, the NGOs who lobbied and the corporate or commercial interests that lobbied are there for everybody to see. That is very reasonable and I do not think it is a major hassle to agree that.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.