Results 2,141-2,160 of 6,939 for speaker:Cian O'Callaghan

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I would appreciate answers on the two questions I asked. Will it be lawful to disregard or ignore national planning statements, if the Bill passes with its current wording? Are national planning statements secondary legislation? The Minister of State made the case that they are not secondary legislation. I ask him to expand on that. Has he received any advice on national planning...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Deputy can get an answer to this.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I will follow.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Are national planning statements a form of secondary legislation?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I think the Minister of State has made that clear. As for not having Oireachtas approval, he stated he has advice on this and the advice says it is all fine, but was there any advice on whether this would be stronger and more robust if there were Oireachtas approval in that area?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: That is clear. I thank the Minister of State.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Amendment No. 189 relates to national planning statement revocations. If passed, it means they will be subject to Oireachtas committee scrutiny. The importance of having a role for the Oireachtas committee in democratic oversight would strengthen this and make it much better. I think there is a strong case for that.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I thought for a moment that when the Minister of State said he was taking the same view, he was about to accept my amendment.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I understand that. Given the significance of national planning statements, which we have gone through, having a role for the Oireachtas joint committee in the scrutiny makes sense. The national planning statements, as has been referenced, cover a huge number of areas. It is a inexhaustive list. Planning and development covers important issues such as the pattern, layout and form of...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Minister of State is saying that it is the Government's view that it makes policy. This amendment would not stop there being a key role for the Government and it would just be to put in a role for the joint committee in terms of scrutiny. The Government would still be drafting policy and by virtue of its numbers, it would normally be able to get that policy approved. However, this...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: On amendment No. 526 and that very point, it is a significant power relating to the urgent direction requiring chief executive to vary development plan. There are reasons why this power may be needed. For it to be done by the Minister without Oireachtas involvement, however, would effectively involve the Minister overriding the democratic decision of local government. The European...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I will not take up the same amount of time as the other proposer of this amendment, but I do want to have just a little bit of time to comment on it. The report of the Mahon tribunal states: "the Tribunal is concerned at the extent of the Minister’s powers in the planning system as a whole". As Deputy Ó Broin outlined, the recommendations of the tribunal in this respect are not...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Section 20C of the Planning and Development Act 2000 states: (8) The Government shall submit the draft of the revised or new National Planning Framework together with the Environmental Report and Appropriate Assessment Report for the approval of each House of the Oireachtas before it is published. (9) In preparing or revising the National Planning Framework, the Government shall have...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I do not think I have had a chance to speak to amendment No. 526, and it is my amendment. I appreciate that the Chair wishes to finish this part of the debate, but it is my amendment.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Subsection (3) refers to a class of infrastructure or other development. Is this urgent direction that the Minister can issue in these circumstances both to potentially prevent a certain type of development from taking place and also to ensure a certain type of development does take place? Could the Minister issue a direction to vary a development plan to build a motorway because that has...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I thank the Minister of State for the clarification. I will give a scenario. There could be a local authority where the members doing the development plan decide not to facilitate the construction of a significant roadway in their area. It is unlikely that the majority of elected members would do that. They would only do that in an extreme circumstances. I will just use it as an example....

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: There is also a last bit I want to tease out. Clearly if there is some sort of emergency event or disaster and if this provision covers it then there is a rationale for it. This section of the Bill refers to "an event or situation". This is very broad and there is nothing limiting that. It must have significant national or regional strategic implications but surely a Minister could take a...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: My concern is that a Minister may decide, for example, that traffic congestion is - in the Minister's view - urgent and that it is of strategic regional-----

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The issue is that this is not clearly, closely or tightly defined. It could be open to different interpretation. The absence of Oireachtas approval makes it much wider again. Oireachtas approval would be a form of safeguard on that. If, in the view of many, a Minister was being unreasonable on an issue, the Oireachtas oversight would give a chance for this to be aired. There is no...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: No, but I will come back in after the Minister of State.