Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. First of all, I will say to the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, that an awful lot of good, sound work has gone into the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2025. The extending of the pause of duration of permission due to judicial review is to give back the time. That is very important. The containment in the Bill of the "Extension of duration for uncommenced housing developments (including single house development) which have less than 2 years of duration of their permission remaining" is also very important, as is the provision that "An extension of up to 3 years may be sought provided it is applied for within 6 months of the provision commencing". I do appreciate that "The planning authority must be satisfied that the development will be completed within a reasonable time, and if the duration is extended under this provision the works must commence within 18 months of the provision commencing or the extension will cease to have effect." Those are very sensible measures that will have a direct input for people on the ground. Other works that have been carried out have gone for consultation now, such as the exemptions for development. This is going to be a very welcome development for our local authorities because the planning departments of our local authorities are engaged an awful lot with what I would call gobbledegook, things that are a waste of time for them, but at the same time, the people have to apply for it. Thankfully, this Government is listening to common sense because these exemptions were something that I and my brother, Danny Healy-Rae, were very anxious to have in the time of this Government.

I will give the Leas Cheann-Comhairle an example of the exemptions. I refer to the idea and provision of modular homes. Modular homes are what I would call very high-class now, and they are good accommodation. They are not some airy-fairy thing at the bottom of the garden. These are sound, sensible housing solutions. They can be short term, or they could be longer term. They are warm, comfortable, well insulated and properly ventilated. The idea is that a person will be able to apply to put in one of these units in the curtilage of his or her home and have that as a housing solution. It could be for an older person or young couples who need to get going on the property ladder. I really think that is very good. There are an awful lot of other things as well, however, such as the subdivision of large houses and the idea of attics being able to be developed without having to go to the planning authority. That is what I would call sound, sensible work by the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, and I very much appreciate that.

There is the whole idea then of young people. In County Kerry, we have an awful lot of people who do not want anything from anybody. They do not want anything. The do not want money; they do not want anything. What they want is a piece of paper telling them they have permission. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle has them. People say, "give me a piece of paper granting me permission." They have land, and they have their own way between their bit of savings and the mortgage they hopefully will get. The banks could loosen up a small bit too, look after our young people and be more user-friendly when it comes to giving loans. If they get that golden piece of paper giving them permission to build their houses, that is all they want from this State. That is all they want, and we should encourage that to happen every way we can and allow these young people to be able to build their own homes. That is what this Government is about and that is what we want to do.

There is one thing about An Bord Pleanála, and this has to be put on record in this House. Our late father always said that you can say anything once you are telling the truth. A situation may arise whereby a person is referred to An Bord Pleanála, and an inspector would go to look at the proposed development. That inspector would look at what is proposed on the ground, do up a report and go before the board in Dublin to say that he or she recommends a grant of permission in that case. Many people in Ireland might think the board is a very well-organised thing with a big crowd of people, like a Cabinet meeting. It is not. When An Bord Pleanála meets, it might be the inspector who has come back with his or her report and two other people. This could be happening at 5 o'clock , 7 o'clock or 9 o'clock at night or whenever it suits those individuals to have their meeting. What can happen then is the hardworking person who is has gone into great detail and visited the site might be recommending that, yes, this planning should be granted, but all of a sudden the two geniuses who were maybe never in the county will say they do not agree with that person, and he or she gets outnumbered by two to one. That means that person's hope is gone. It could be a young person in Glencar or somewhere who is looking to build a house for themselves. It could be a developer, and there is nothing wrong with being a developer. There is nothing wrong with being a hardworking builder who maybe has the wherewithal to build ten, 50 or 100 houses. I am glad the Taoiseach recognises that the involvement of the private sector is very important in taking care of the future housing needs because, as a State, we will not be able to do it all and we need those big developers. We need those small developers.

7 o’clock

We also need medium-sized developers. However, when their work is going before the board and these people, in their infinite wisdom, take it upon themselves to dash those hopes and dreams and say "No", not only are they saying "No" to that person but they are saying "No" to everything in that report. They are going against their own inspector. I ask the Minister to use his influence to tell these people common sense will have to prevail. They may not realise there is a housing crisis and do not have to face the people or go to clinics and hear young people say, "I got my planning from my local authority. I was taken to An Bord Pleanála and an inspector came down here, agreed with the local authority, and two other geniuses up in Dublin said "No"." That is what is happening.

These geniuses in An Bord Pleanála take it upon themselves that the only word they seem to know is "No". Maybe they could be told "Yes" is also an option and something they could say. If they have a home themselves, they might think of the people who do not and of those who have spent a fortune on their planning application. It is important that common sense prevails. There is a housing crisis and I am grateful it is the number one priority for this Government. There is money being spent on housing and of course, we must address issues like infrastructure. With regard to Irish Water, we have to look after our small towns and villages that need extensions to sewerage schemes. We need extra provision of portable water for these towns and villages so they can be areas where people can come along and put in a planning application. We need to work together.

This is why what the Government is doing here is so important. I said at the beginning, where judicial reviews are taking place, and where we are being robbed of time, the Minister will be able to help in that situation. That is what I call sound, sensible work. Whether people want to recognise the Minister's work on this or not, I can tell him I do because I appreciate what he is doing and the way his head is thinking.

See this speech in context