Mr. Brendan Heneghan:

Deputy Higgins asked about six different questions in there. On the residents' groups, in the case of my group, which is big, it would be impractical to have to list everybody. Half the people would have a complete conniption if their names were put into a formal planning appeal. This Bill, in my view, is saying that residents' associations cannot appeal beyond the basic local authority because they are putting in a completely impractical requirement. It could be required to list the names of the committee. Many residents’ associations register with the councils. The councils probably have some sense of which residents’ associations are permanently there. I have submitted the list, which is on the committee's records, of people who have appealed in the past year. I strongly suspect that the vast majority of those groups are representative of a number of underlying people. I do not think there is any substance to the suggestion that this is just two cranks who are just obstructing every planning decision. I have looked at the underlying documentation on a random sample of these. Certainly the planning file suggests that many objections have gone into the planning authority. I doubt there is an issue in residents’ groups about a couple of people, who just object to everything, throwing in objections. All of the objections that I have listed relate to something that is immediately next door and on the face of it, out of legitimate interest.

Furthermore, it beats me why those people would not be allowed to go to court if the planning authority makes a mess of it or if An Bord Pleanála makes a mess of process. They are possible suggestions for deleting that new sentence about listing the names of the residents and trying to figure out some way to show there is substance.