Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The answer is the Attorney General along with the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, have committed huge resources to doing a top-to-bottom review of the planning and development legislation. Originally the Planning Act 2000 was a very good Act but it has been amended so many times and is so complex, multilayered and multifaceted that it is very hard for anyone to implement.

The review, updating and recalibrating of that legislation is one of the most important projects the Government has under way. It will be completed by the end of the year and will help not just this project, but a whole range of projects, to get through the planning process more quickly. I keep coming back to the point that we should be straight and honest that, to get the country more balanced in this way, we will also have to invest in rail in Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick. We will have to invest in rural public transport and build a metro in Dublin, about which I am going to be asked questions. That is one reality. Planning is one issue but the allocation of capital expenditure will mean that not every project will be built tomorrow. However, as to the question of whether we should or will build the Navan rail line, we certainly will.

See this speech in context