Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I start by assuring the Deputy the Government is not sweeping anything under the carpet. We regard the revelations that have emerged as being of the utmost seriousness. That is why the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has acted decisively and it is why the Government is acting. The Minister has obtained Government approval for an action plan for An Bord Pleanála, outlining a series of specific measures to address the Office of the Planning Regulator's phase 1 review recommendations. The issue has been discussed at Government level.

It is important to recap briefly. The issue that triggered all of this is one with which we are well familiar. On 27 July, the Minister received the report from Mr. Remy Farrell SC into the management of conflicts of interest and relevant disclosures by the deputy chairperson of An Bord Pleanála in respect of certain decisions of the board.

As the Deputy has acknowledged, in the middle of August, on the advice of the Attorney General the Minister referred the report to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, An Garda Síochána and the Standards In Public Office Commission, SIPO. The Office of the DPP is actively dealing with the matter and has requested that Mr. Farrell's report not be published or otherwise released until such time as the process has been concluded. In view of this, it would be inappropriate for me, or anyone on behalf of the Government, to comment further on that specific matter. I acknowledge that the Deputy has not asked me to do so.

The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has obtained Government approval for an action plan arising from phase 1 of the recommendations of the Office of the Planning Regulator, OPR, as part of the review that was carried out by the OPR of An Bord Pleanála. The action plan includes measures to address conflicts of interest, changes to the board appointment system, strengthening the senior management team and the provision of further resources to An Bord Pleanála. A whole series of very significant and impactful changes have been agreed to and will be implemented. We provided significant resources to the Minister of Housing, Local Government and Heritage in the budget for beefing up the capacity of An Bord Pleanála and to address a number of the issues that have been raised.

With regard to broader issues that have been raised in relation to the board's internal processes, on 24 August the OPR initiated its review of An Bord Pleanála systems and procedures of part of its review programme. The review, which is being undertaken by independent planning experts from other jurisdictions and Mr. Conleth Bradley SC, is being carried out in two parts in line with the terms of reference which have been published on the OPR's website. This review will help inform other internal changes as required and will also assist in identifying legislative amendments which may be required. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has welcomed the publication of phase 1 of the OPR review of An Bord Pleanála. The OPR review sets out a series of recommendations, a number of which the Minister and his Department will now act upon, and a number of which will fall to the board for implementation. In order to uphold trust in the planning system and maintain its ongoing functionality, the Minister has concluded that a range of actions are now required which involve both immediate and medium to longer term actions as well.

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