Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)

The Minister had extra time; now it is my time. This is one of the most important Bills to be debated in this House. It will have serious, far-reaching effects and we should give it proper consideration. My colleagues on this side of the House, representing the relevant portfolios, will respond in this debate. It is something of an exaggeration to state that Ireland is a First World economy with Third World infrastructure. Our buses are overcrowded, our roads are clogged and our trains are non-existent. There is a sense that nothing works and that this Government is not working for the citizens.

The ordinary commuter often has 12-hour days. Many children never see parents during the week, except for fleeting moments early in the morning or late at night. Our road network is not progressing quickly enough. We have appalling broadband penetration in many areas of the country, hampering businesses and inconveniencing householders. Fine Gael believes in real quality of life gains. It wants a metro in Dublin, a rail link to the airport, an end to hospital waiting lists, an end to social housing waiting lists, a motorway network that works and a public transport network that leads to fewer journeys by car.

Fine Gael welcomes this Bill in principle but is concerned by some proposed changes, especially new powers the Minister is granting to An Bord Pleanála which are counter-productive and will lead to litigation and a loss of public confidence in the planning process. In preparing my contribution I have consulted what has been published in the media, pages from www.google.ie and papers from a seminar in University College Cork concerning this Bill. The papers are most worthwhile and many points raised are incorporated into my contribution.

I do not object to the extra time the Minister was granted. A Bill like this needs real input across the board and from the entire community. There is a lack of resources in Leinster House. While the Minister has his Department to inform him, we are dependent on the Internet. We need better input into legislation such as this, particularly from the universities and the Law Society of Ireland. I challenge the Government to address such issues. Lawyers in particular will benefit greatly from what we pass, but we need a direct information line from the legal profession and right across the board into Dáil Éireann. They must submit recommendations on Bills in a non-political process. That would inform debate since neither the Minister nor I has the collective wisdom of the country, lawyers or planners, particularly regarding the legal process. We need that and I have incorporated it as best I can.

At the core of the debate are the competing perspectives of local versus national and individual versus collective, and of economic growth versus environmental protection. We must get the balance right this time and in Fine Gael's view each application for such development must be accompanied not only by an environmental impact statement but by detailed economic and social analysis outlining the clear need for the proposals. We will table amendments to that effect.

The new legislation in particular must not be used by private developers to fast-track controversial, profit-driven projects. No one will argue with such projects as the Dublin metro and the western rail corridor using the new process, but we are very concerned that controversial projects such as shopping centres and office blocks that are profit-driven as opposed to being for the public good might use this legislation. One issue in this regard is that the Bill proposes that a regional, almost local, issue may go before An Bord Pleanála, even if it affects only two adjoining local authorities.

I have no problem with the major projects, and I will not be misunderstood on that, but I will not support the fast-tracking of profit-oriented projects against the public interest. That is the core of the Bill and the debate that we must have. Fine Gael said in its policy formulated last November that we want the Government to take a leaf from its Dutch counterpart, deciding at national level in strategic planning those regions in which large infrastructure projects must be situated and inviting public expressions of opinion before instigating a swift and effective planning process. That way, the process would be characterised by transparency regarding the Government's intentions, fairness concerning the perspectives that the regions and communities express and effectiveness in deciding where projects go.

We do not want a continuation of the current process. On waste management, communities which never listed for such projects in the regional plans must suddenly fight and target the issues. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy McDowell, and the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Martin, have had that problem regarding incinerators, as have I. Prison sites, motorways and power stations are also controversial at local level. We must have total clarity and honesty since we will bring greater integrity to the process by planning from the top down.

Strategic infrastructure projects merit a fast-track planning process, but only where the broad location and principle of the infrastructure in question have been considered and included in the national spatial strategy, which we must rewrite, as many significant players in the planning process, including, I believe, the head of the Irish Planning Institute, have said. The country has changed since the plan was adopted and the Government has totally messed things up regarding decentralisation, which is a mockery. We must revisit and rewrite the strategy, inserting critical infrastructure projects and identifying where in the regions they will be to allow proper and effective planning.

Fine Gael will also include the fast-tracking of urgent care medical centres in this Bill. It allows for social infrastructure to be covered. We believe that medical social infrastructure is urgently needed and absolutely essential, something that our health spokesperson will address. The Bill introduces fundamental changes to the Irish planning system that will have a profound impact on everyone, including local authorities, developers and, not least, the public. It will radically alter the nature, functions and composition of An Bord Pleanála. As I said, I support the principle, provided that it does not have an adverse impact on the quality of assessment of such developments or the degree of public participation in the development consent process.

People say that the Bill is necessary for planning, but that process works very effectively, despite delays at local authority stage. The reality is, as An Bord Pleanála shows in its reports, that it has been very effective and efficient in dealing with the planning process. The weakness in the Minister's Bill is that he deals only with the land strategy rather than with those issues causing the real delay. I accept and appreciate what he has said regarding what the High Court will do. I am a member of the Opposition rather than a Minister, and I see no Bill before me from the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to introduce a new division to the High Court. Does it require new legislation?

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