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

That is very clear. I said that to the Minister of State and did not need it explained back to me. The issue is very specific. For instance, I got a maritime area consent. I put in my planning application. There is a judicial review of the consent. These will be large, complex and difficult applications. We are allowing the planning authority to proceed to make a decision. I understand fully that the permission is not granted, but the planning authority will potentially get all the way to a decision while the judicial review is in train. If the latter is successful, the planning authority has spent a hell of a lot of time making a decision that can never actioned. Likewise, with an appeal.

I am not arguing against this. I am not saying that I have a problem with it. It is a very new provision and one I would like to understand. Under certain circumstances, are we not at risk of allowing or requiring our planning authorities or An Bord Pleanála to expend a significant volume of resources for a decision that if a judicial review stands, they will not be able to grant permission anyway? I am asking how we avoid that, because we are avoiding a delay in one area but could be creating a very significant delay in another. Right now, our planning authorities - neither the board nor the local authorities - have sufficient resources. That is matter of public record and we have discussed it here at great length. That means if saying to them to plan ahead and get that particular application up to the point of grant - it cannot be granted until a final decision is made in the court - that is staffing resources that could be utilised somewhere else to clear a backlog or allow other decisions that are not subject to a judicial.