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

We have plans that allow for a diverse range of uses, the policies at national level and development plans and as quoted, section 46(2)(a), which states that the strategy shall include objectives for cultural spaces. This is all fine but we are not actually getting the cultural spaces, particularly in areas with a lot of new development. While it is allowed for under the planning system and there are objectives for it, what we are getting are thousands of homes with a little bit of commercial space and a dearth of everything else. If we compare new areas with between 5,000 and 10,000 homes with areas built decades ago that may have multiple community, sporting and cultural spaces if they are doing well, we can see that those newer areas may have nothing or be doing well to have one space so there is a real gap. The planning system allows for all of this but it does not make it happen. It involves how that interacts with market forces, which simply look for the owner of the land to get the best return and the best return does not involve cultural spaces. That is the problem. The planning system is not strong or prescriptive enough and does not ensure we get the cultural spaces that we need. That deficit must be addressed but the high-level policies or objectives just do not do it. They do not go far enough.