Mr. Kevin Kelly:

Under current policy there are provisions for policy directions to be received from a national level. It is important that, at any time we do our plans and go through the process, it should take something substantial for a change to be made under a national planning statement. We would like to see a scenario where, having gone through the rigours of a development plan overseen by the Office of the Planning Regulator, OPR, everyone accepts the plan to be fully in accordance with national policy and that all decisions must be made in accordance with it. It should only be changed later by national planning statements in limited circumstances. One of the things we need to ensure in our planning system is the issue of certainty. At the moment there is a lack of it because people are wondering what is happening at regional and national level and where the development plan sits. Many practitioners and members feel that little regard is now being paid to the development plan. People are looking elsewhere for the policy. We would like to see a scenario where we go through the process, the plan is checked and that is the decision-making at local level and in the commission in due course. That would then only be changed if at a point in time national planning statements are issued. Only the development plan and any new national planning statement on a substantial issue should become the basis for decision-making.