Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Let us learn some lessons from terrestrial planning. A local authority grants planning permission and there is an obligation on the person who has been granted that permission to build according to the plan. For example, if a local authority provides a licence for quarrying, there is an obligation on the person to quarry in accordance with the licence. The first issue is whether the legislation will explicitly mandate the managing authority to follow up and ensure compliance. This is not what happens with our planning system. If South Dublin County Council awards planning permission, the person to whom it is awarded has to comply but there is no legal requirement for the local authority to check. It is only if a third party formal planning complaint is made to the planning authority that somebody goes out to inspect. This is a difficult enough process and there is only one person to whom I can pick up the phone. If a regular member of the public or somebody who does not know the complexity of the system I have just described firmly believes there is a problem, he or she will not know who is responsible for what activity. If I come across an emergency on the street tomorrow, I do not have to work out whether I need the police or the ambulance. I just ring 999 and that service works it out for me. I know I am simplifying the matter. The only reason I am saying this is that enforcement only works if it is clear and straightforward. From what has been described, this sounds as though it will be a very complex system. Will there be a legal obligation on the management authorities to ensure compliance? Will we design a system for people who are not the management authorities? There will be a lot of interest in this and we all want compliance. How do we make sure people can engage and interact with it, from the regular citizen or small community group to the mid-sized NGO or Member of the Oireachtas?