Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is good that we are having this discussion about the serious issues that have arisen surrounding An Bord Pleanála. These go right to the heart of our planning system. It is the biggest crisis in our planning system since the Mahon tribunal. It is important to remember the words of Mr. Justice Alan Mahon who said that the presence of conflicts of interest do not necessarily equate to corruption but it creates the conditions under which corruption can flourish. It is clear from what has been reported that the conflicts of interest were rife in An Bord Pleanála. There has been a litany of allegations of poor processes, procedures and practice, thanks to the work of the investigative site The Ditch, which produced no less than 29 detailed reports on various cases of malpractice and, in some instances, cases of even of greater concern. As a result of The Ditch, these things have become clear and have come into the public realm.

We know that it is not reducible to a single individual or instance. However, the reality of this is that the board's code of conduct is perfectly clear in that those board members are forbidden from voting on decisions in their own neighbourhood and must recuse themselves to ensure conflicts of interest do not arise and, yet, we have a clear pattern of this being breached time and again.

How is it that we become reliant on an online news site to make these things clear for us? Decisions by An Bord Pleanála are not irrelevant. These are decisions which literally impact on communities. How can we expect communities throughout this State, whose neighbourhoods often rely on the decisions made by An Bord Pleanála, to have in those decisions and in their being made in the best interest of the entire community? How can it be that, years after the Mahon tribunal, questions are still raised on the planning process in this State?

How can people have faith in the system? I have only been a Deputy for approximately two and a half years and, time and again, we see issues with ethics. We see clear breaches of ethics. How can people have faith in the system? How can they believe that the system is actually working for them when all they see are cosy relationships, friendships and breaches of ethics? That is completely and utterly wrong.

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