Results 2,641-2,660 of 15,009 for speaker:Eoin Ó Broin

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: That obviously refers to section 36(8)(a) to (d). If the direction is based on more than one of those in section 36(8)(a) to (d) and, in the court proceedings, just one of those is deemed invalid, then the direction should still have legal standing.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Unless the court finds that the Minister was not entitled to form such an opinion. Is that a new provision? Has it been used before? I am intrigued to know.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: I presume, therefore, there is a reason it is there.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: It sounds like there was some case somewhere where there was a list of reasons something was deemed invalid but because only one of them fell foul of the court, a decision was overturned and this is to try to prevent such an occurrence. I presume there was a real-life case of something like this.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: The Department officials probably know.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Am I right in saying this is there to fix a problem that has been identified from previous court proceedings of a similar nature?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Okay

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: I move amendment No. 302: In page 97, line 6, to delete “8 years” and substitute “7 years”. Most of my amendments on this section are stand-alone so I will take them one by one.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Amendment No. 302 seeks to make a small but important change to section 40(2). The current text provides: "Not later than 8 years after the making of each development plan for the functional area of a planning authority, the planning authority shall commence a review of the development plan..." It might seem that reducing the time to seven years is not a big change, but there was quite a...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: It is obvious I will not convince the Minister of State of the merits of the amendment. However, does he accept and has he heard the concerns of councillors?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: They desire to ensure that a councillor who is elected midway through a ten year development plan cycle would get the opportunity to shape either the review or the revised plan. The premise of the Minister of State's refusal to accept the amendment lies not so much with the substance of what I am proposing, but with the knock-on consequences, some of which are unintended-----

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: -----as opposed to the substantive issue, which is ensuring it would not be possible to have a situation where an elected representative who was elected for five years had no functional role in the development plan process. Does the Minister of State not think that should at least be looked at?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: I will make a final point about it. Unfortunately, the policy committees the Minister of State mentioned do not have any real statutory function. They are statutory committees, but they are broadly consultative as the Minister of State will be aware from his time on the council, like the rest of us. The development plan, not unlike the current expenditure budget, is one of the few areas...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Does that give the summary any greater legal weight or effect in the Minister’s decisions than the submissions on which the summaries are based?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: The Minister of State is clear about that legally. Okay.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: "The Office shall adopt a code of conduct for dealing with conflicts of interest ..." This begs one question, and I would like the Minister of State to come back on public participation and elected member consultation with the area plans and development plans. "The Office shall adopt a code of conduct for dealing with conflicts of interest and promoting public confidence in the integrity...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Can the Minister of State also clarify on public participation and elected member participation?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: They are not in this grouping.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Mar 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Amendment No. 715 relates to section 124.