Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We go forward with all modesty and so on.

In respect of the issue, I was going to mention the vacant and dereliction grants which give real opportunities but I take the Deputy's point. I understand the sincerity of what the Deputy is saying in terms of people who want to build on their family's land. The overall planning policy over the years has been to try to move to areas that are contiguous to villages and towns for services including sewerage, amenities and so on. That has been the preferred policy direction. However, most county development plans have provision for cases where people can build on the family land if it is a farm, with proper planning frameworks to guide such development. Obviously, I am not aware of the specifics in every county area but if permission has been given to build an extension to an existing house-----

See this speech in context