Ms Mary Henchy:

The Deputy asked whether we had considered a site like Cherrywood and having the local authority use one site for 800 units instead of waiting for individuals. I concur with much of what my colleagues from the other local authorities have said. The Deputy will know from the golf course lands in Dún Laoghaire that it has not been the case that social housing has come last. Rather, it has come up front. This is all part of the negotiations. In a scheme like Cherrywood with higher density housing, one can achieve more by working with the totality of the landholding than by splitting off elements. There are circa ten landowners within Cherrywood. To combine their holdings into one site would be a negotiation outside of what is facilitated by Part V, which is site specific and dependent on the planning application that is lodged. Permission only comes into play when it commences. Rather than Part V, what the Deputy is asking about requires a different set of rules.