Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 9 March 2023

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed)

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

I wish to address timelines and penalties. As the witnesses are aware, I am very strongly in favour of timelines, particularly in terms of development consents in local authorities and the board. This is a part of the Bill we really need to get right because if we get it right, it will be very helpful to applicants, local authorities, communities, etc. Can Mr. Hogan at least give us some indication of what the Department's thinking is concerning the framework? The board made a strong argument that some timelines should be shorter while others should be longer and that there should be some clear correlation between complexity and a defence. That is good so long as it makes sense. Oonagh Buckley made a compelling case against penalties in the sense that there could be better ways of ensuring compliance. She set out some of those to members at our meeting.

Another issue is resources. This is not just about board members or statutory planners but also about the other staff. The County and City Management Association made very clear that the workforce plan involving 500 extra planning staff, which was indicated last year, was intended to meet what it had on its plate at that point in time. I know Mr. Hogan keeps talking about efficiency. I suspect if he was back in a local authority, he would have a different view. This legislation creates additional responsibility. There is no doubt that efficiency is important but there are new and additional areas of responsibility, particularly for timelines. Where are those three elements, namely, timelines, penalties and resourcing?

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