Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In relation to the appointment of Fingal County Council as the noise regulator under EU Regulation 598/2014, I wish to advise the Deputy that officials from my Department and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government are working on draft heads of a Bill. That work is primarily focused on the interaction among noise regulation, the EU environmental noise directive and the planning framework. When this is complete, the next step will be to engage the Office of the Attorney General with draft heads of a Bill.

Throughout this process, the chief executive of Fingal County Council and his senior staff have been either directly involved in matters or advised of developments, and they continue to feed in their expertise as required. It is obviously important that the proposed regulatory regime adheres fully to the requirements of the EU regulation. It is also key that it dovetails with existing environmental and planning processes in a way that is implementable by the competent authority and understood by the regulated entity and all other stakeholders.

At a point when there is clarity on the final regulatory model, including formal draft heads, there will be opportunity for a round of stakeholder engagements in advance of the pre-legislative scrutiny of a draft general scheme. As regards the north runway project, I have already met with a number of residents' groups to hear their views and concerns and the Deputy will recall that I arranged for my Department to brief him and others about the Fingal proposal earlier in the year. Those lines of communication remain open and available for future consultation as things move on.

My officials have been involved with Fingal on a very detailed basis in recent times and will continue to be so. I have been involved with stakeholders such as residents and the DAA but communication will continue to be at official level for the moment. I am very willing to meet them when Fingal County Council and my officials feel it is time to do so.

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