Carol Nolan (Laois-Offaly, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise the ongoing challenges presented by Ireland's planning laws, and in particular the problems that are being created in the area of planning in rural Ireland. The most recent high-profile incidence of this is the decision by the Supreme Court, rightly, to reject an application to have the proposed Glanbia factory project halted.

Some of the Minister's Government colleagues have welcomed this Supreme Court decision, as have many others, including me and my Rural Independent Group colleagues, as a victory of common sense against an overzealous and inflexible attitude towards environmental or emissions targets.

The rush to court and the use of judicial reviews around infrastructure planning is creating paralysis in some areas. In many other less well-known cases at a local level, An Bord Pleanála is simply not fulfilling its statutory obligations, in particular when it comes to section 126 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, which states that every appeal is to be determined within 18 weeks. This is not happening. I have no wish to personalise this matter against the staff of An Bord Pleanála. I am sure they are as frustrated as the rest of us with the growing need to assess even the most minor projects against a library shelf of EU regulations. We need a much more simplified and straightforward system because the one we have is simply not working, is creating frustration and is jeopardising much-needed investment and job creation in many areas.

I will refer to the case of Banagher Chilling in my constituency, a multi-million euro investment that would offer vital price competition to beef farmers. In January 2021, An Bord Pleanála initially confirmed that it was not in a position to determine whether the inspector's report, which was due by 4 January 2021, would be completed. That was bad enough, but the situation became worse. In March 2021, it was confirmed to me that An Bord Pleanála had yet to receive the report despite the new deadline of 1 March having come and gone. Fast forward to September 2021, and An Bord Pleanála was still not in a position to confirm when the inspector would submit the report on the appeal. In January 2022, I was told that the report would definitely be ready within two weeks, yet it is almost the end of February and there is still no sign of the report. That is a far cry from 18 weeks. We must address this urgently because An Bord Pleanála is not upholding the statutory planning timeframe within which decisions are due. This is also creating frustration and jeopardising much-needed investment and jobs.

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