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

This is a minor point, and I am saying this because we will come back to it. The phrase "shall have regard to" is one of the weakest formulations used in the legislation. There is a real dichotomy throughout the Bill, which is that where the Government really wants something to happen, it is stated that it must comply with or must substantially or materially comply with something. When it is a soft obligation, the wording used is "shall have regard to". That is the problem namely, that it is not new language. I am only asking that the Minister consider, either between now and Report Stage or when the Bill goes to the Seanad, strengthening the language of the existing provisions in order that a much stronger obligation will be placed on local authorities. The reality is that for far too many people in far too many parts of the country, what is currently in legislation, which the Minister is replicating here, is not doing what they need.