Mr. Niall Cussen:

The Senator asked a very good question. I echo my colleague Mr. Mullan in saying that the resourcing and supporting of the planning process that the committee can advocate for is really important.

When the crash hit, local authorities and the then board were public service areas that cutbacks hit much harder than anywhere else. The numbers in local authorities were reduced by a third, for example. The two areas where those cutbacks hit hardest were in planning and housing. To some extent, we are still dealing with the retrenchment we had to do at a time of great national need. There was a price to it and we are only really starting to come out of it.

In terms of supporting our planning process, the clue is in the remarks I made at the very beginning on infrastructure planning and our spatial planning process. We will get through this if we ensure that they are very carefully and tightly aligned. It is not a question of getting infrastructure delivered despite or around the planning system. Rather, it should be done through long-term and integrated thinking and making sure the two sides of the same coin - infrastructure and planning - join up.

Anything the committee can do with regard to looking at that or engaging with other committee colleagues - the housing committee and others - would be great.