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

However, the real issue is not that. The reason the Government is introducing national planning policy statements to replace SPPRs is that when a number of very controversial SPPRs relating to design standards and building heights went to the courts, they did not stand up as legally robust on foot of judicial reviews. As a consequence, they are legally unsound. They comprise a legally weak mechanism where they are controversial. I accept that large volumes of SPPRs are not controversial and play a perfectly good role in our planning system; however, where they are controversial, subject to litigation or are at variance with development plans or requirements concerning strategic development zones, the courts have found against them. The difficulty is that those SPPRs are legally weak, and that is why the Government is introducing the new national policy statements. However, why is it leaving open the weakness that will potentially result in further judicial reviews of existing section 28 guideline SPPRs rather than just accepting they are of a weaker standard? I will not labour the point but that is the argument.