Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

On 14 June 2013, the High Court made an order quashing that part of my Department's planning review report of 2012 relating to Donegal following a settlement between my Department and the party concerned who had brought judicial review proceedings in respect of that part of the report. The matter has been disposed of to the satisfaction of both sides. In light of these proceedings, my Department subsequently sought the advice of the Attorney General on how best to proceed in the case of issues raised relating to planning matters in Donegal.

I have now considered what next steps need to be taken in this regard, taking account of advice from the Office of the Attorney General. In that context, my Department is finalising arrangements for the imminent appointment on a non-statutory basis of a senior counsel nominated by the Attorney General to prepare a report relating to the matters concerned. This report will be prepared in line with terms of reference which have been agreed in consultation with the Attorney General's office.

The arrangements involved in the preparation of the report will be announced in due course. It will be a matter for the appointed senior counsel to determine how best to undertake the preparation of the report relating to these matters, including engagement with any relevant persons. I would expect that the same person will engage with all relevant parties in order to deal with this issue in a satisfactory way.

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