Results 3,501-3,520 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 Feb 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: I will deal with those arguments in reverse. Experience shows that where exempted development regulations are brought before the House, they are expedited in a timely manner. Members of this committee both during this Oireachtas and the previous Oireachtas took seriously our responsibility regarding those regulations. When we were asked to deal with them in a timely manner, we did so, both...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I have one more amendment in this group. I do not know if Deputy O'Callaghan wants to come in.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I will move to amendment No. 42, the last in this group. I appreciate that we are spending a lot of time on this section, which is only three quarters of a page. However, it governs the issuance of regulations and I suspect that when we get to the next group of amendments and discuss the regulations and enactment, the actual pile of paper containing the regulations arising from the Bill...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: This is like the legislative equivalent of unauthorised development. We have a provision, which allows that the Minister can modify any provision of the Act. It means that without due process through the Oireachtas, the provision of the Act can be modified by him or her within three years. We are told that is okay and not to worry, because they will then retrospectively look for retention...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: It is not the case that this is only for technical or drafting issues or transitional matters. The Bill states that "any such regulations may modify any provision of this Act". If this was simply about a procedure whereby within three years somebody notices a drafting or technical error or some transitional arrangement, that is fine and that could be an explicit provision in the Bill....

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Where in the legislation does it say that, with the greatest of respect?

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Okay, let me tease this out. Here we have a general provision that will allow any future Minister, by way of secondary legislation, to change or modify any provision of this legislation. The Minister of State has told the committee that this would then have to be regularised by the Oireachtas through primary legislation but there is no legal requirement to do that in this Bill. On what...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Here is my final question on this. Is there anything in legislation here or elsewhere that would compel a Minister who has used this provision to change primary legislation by way of secondary legislation or regulations to then have to come before the Oireachtas with amending legislation? I put it to the Minister of State that there is nothing that compels a Minister to do that. It may be...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Before the Minister of State does that, I just want to be very clear on this and I am not trying to be in any way adversarial here. There is an enormous amount of interest in this Bill. What happens in these committee sessions is going to consume the attention of people who are going to work in this area. I am asking the Minister of State to be as clear as he can. Even though he said...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: It is an operational matter but there is no requirement for the Minister to do that. The Minister can do it if he or she wants to. I just wanted to be clear on that.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Yes. May I make one final comment? It is not a question. It is remarkable, notwithstanding the fact that this was in legislation previously, that primary legislation can be amended by secondary legislation without any legislative requirement, then subsequently amend primary legislation. I am just astounded that somebody even thought of such a provision back in 2000, but I think we have...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: That is the least the Minister of State could do.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I move amendment No. 37: In page 38, line 17, to delete “or expedient for the purposes of the regulations” and substitute the following: “for the purposes of the regulations and shall exercise a conservative approach to determining such matters are required to be addressed in the regulations”.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I move amendment No. 38: In page 38, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following: “(4) The relevant Minister shall— (a) establish a list of prescribed bodies for the purposes of consultation on regulations and other matters under this Act under their jurisdiction, (b) the list prescribed under paragraph (a), shall include organisations engaged in either environmental...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: No. I will move on to amendment No. 38. The Minister of State did not fully respond on amendment No. 37. Perhaps he could do so when responding to amendment No. 38, which also relates to section 4. Obviously, it follows on from our discussion on what the Government is proposing. Section 4(4) states: Where regulations are proposed to be made under subsection (1) of section 9 or...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: That does not answer the question, with the greatest of respect.