James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We want local authorities to own land and in a lot of areas they do not own enough land. It is always open to local authorities to buy land, whether zoned or not zoned. We are working with them and trying to make that part of our new housing plan in terms of making it easier for local authorities to purchase land. They do have their own process to purchase land if they want to and they have their own variation powers to rezone that land for their own purposes. I would like to see local authorities doing that more. I do not think there is any particular reason they should not buy up land and rezone it themselves, if they feel it is appropriate. I do not want local authorities buying pricey land that was priced up as a result of them zoning it. If local authorities need land, they should be going out to CPO it and taking steps to ensure that.

In respect of the regulations in front of us, this to ensure that whatever local authorities are doing that they can continue with the processes they have commenced already because it is those which started the earliest, if you like, and most proactive, will be the ones most impeded as a result of this technical regulation, for a transitionary period, not being approved.