Mr. Frank McDonald:

I would say in general they would. I think that what happened during the boom period was particularly difficult for councillors, however, because of the frenzy element involved in it on the part of landowners, particularly towards the end of the boom. Before it became clear that it was the end of the boom, if the Deputy gets my drift, landowners in other parts of Leinster, far outside Dublin, were frantic to have their land rezoned. Where local area plans were being done for villages in Laois, Monaghan or wherever, this was happening on a widespread basis. Decisions were being made that were totally irrational from a planning point of view, but which satisfied the urge of the landowners in question to make a huge killing on the sale of land for its speculative value as development land.