Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

My reading of the amendment is that it is not arguing against development or suggesting that an area should be sterile or anything of the sort. It is just that development in these more sensitive areas would have to go through the planning process as is standard and would not be exempted development. There is a legitimate case for this. When dealing with the archaeological heritage Bill we discussed the importance of landscapes and context in terms of structures that have a heritage value. There is a strong case to be made. The thing about exempted development is that we want to be able to have confidence in it. We want to know it is not being used in areas that are a bit more sensitive, and that those areas which are a bit more sensitive go through the planning process so that everything can be considered with regard to how the development impacts or not. This is not a case for stopping development or leaving an area sterile. It is the case that certain areas require the full rigors of the planning process for all types of development and they should not be exempted.