Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Planning and Development Bill. It will not come as news to anyone here that the current planning system is not fit for purpose. Decades of mismanagement, under-resourcing and an utter failure to future-proof policies by successive Governments led by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have brought us to this point. As a result, the State is at risk of squandering our incredible potential in renewable energy among other things, while scuppering any opportunity to achieve an energy secure and independent Ireland at the same time. This must change quickly.

A slow and adversarial system that is racked by uncertainty will not deliver solutions to the social, economic and environmental needs of our society. Renewables projects are stuck in the planning system for an average of 92 weeks. The statutory maximum is supposed to be 18 weeks. As a result, many renewables projects never come to fruition because they simply time-out of their contracts. This is not good enough. Our planning system needs root and branch reform. This Bill is long overdue. However, in its current form, it falls far short of addressing the systemic problems in Ireland's beleaguered planning system.

I acknowledge that some aspects of the Bill are welcome and while we are still analysing the detail of the Bill - it is more than 700 pages long, as has been mentioned - it is clear that substantial sections, if not amended, will make the planning system much worse. Sinn Féin has long campaigned for a planning system that will deliver good-quality planning decisions in a timely manner and where such decisions would be made following meaningful public participation. Citizens and communities must be protected. Notifiable bodies and, in the area of environmental planning, environmental bodies must be resources to play their role. I raise specifically with the Minister that it is essential we get this right. This means we must depart from the Government's tendency to rush through legislation that is not thought through.

We must be forward-looking.

In that context, I call on the Government to ensure that the roll-out of regional, spatial and economic strategies are co-ordinated with the roll-out of renewable acceleration areas as part of the renewable energy directive and the identification of the most suitable areas for renewable hubs that is currently being carried out by EirGrid and ESB Networks. We cannot make the same mistakes as before, which have made the delivery on investment in renewables woefully inefficient and lagging behind our European counterparts. There are considerable opportunities to turn our natural resources into national wealth for all. This Bill, if we get it right, can play an important role in that.

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