Results 4,241-4,260 of 8,768 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will say a last sentence on this. I totally want to see planning brought back to local authorities. We are lauding this as a move on from the SHDs but we raised concerns about the fast-tracking of SHDs. I was in the Seanad when we highlighted concerns we had about how it might be abused and fail to deliver. Many of those concerns proved to be correct. When we are flagging concerns or...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I withdraw it, reserving the right to reintroduce.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 2: In page 4, line 22, after “other” to insert “higher”. I withdraw the amendment, reserving the right to reintroduce it on Report Stage.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 3: In page 4, line 24, after “development” to insert the following: “and where the remaining 30 per cent is comprised of public open spaces, landscaping, play facilities, pedestrian permeability or ancillary services, where required, including child care facilities”.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 4: In page 4, line 35, to delete “academic term times” and substitute “the academic year”. I withdraw the amendment, reserving the right to reintroduce it on Report Stage.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I support these amendments. I note the discussion on my previous comments regarding the importance of planning, the independence of our planning structures and the Oireachtas not being overly prescriptive. By the same token, whatever about the Oireachtas being overly prescriptive, it would certainly not be appropriate for the Minister to be able to override, through these guidelines, hard...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will speak first in support of amendment No. 7. I understand a large number of my amendments are grouped together with it. It is appropriate that we listen to local authority members and what they ask. They are not requesting this lightly. They are keenly aware of the process. Local area plans and local development plans are a crucial part of democracy. These are the decisions that...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank the Minister for his willingness to engage with me, Senator Boyhan and others in relation to amendments Nos. 7 and 10 on the local development plans. I look forward to a positive outcome on those coming through on Report Stage. I also thank him for accepting amendment No. 13. It is important in terms of the transparency of the process. I urge the Minister to consider amendments...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Exactly, but even in that regard it was-----

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Absolutely, but it was important the members identified there should not be draft proposals on rezonings coming through directly from officials without engagement with members.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 8: In page 6, between lines 35 and 36, to insert the following: “(i) obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with a Disability, with due regard to the principle of universal design and regulations under Statutory Instrument Number 513 of 2010;”.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 9: In page 6, between lines 37 and 38, to insert the following: “(j) an estimation of greenhouse gas emissions associated with building, including embodied energy as may be released by demolition in the course of the development;”.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 10: In page 6, between lines 37 and 38, to insert the following: “(k) the local development plan or county development plan of the local authority in which the site is located.”. In light of the Minister's commitment to engage on this area on Report Stage, I withdraw amendment No. 10 on local area plans.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 11: In page 6, between lines 37 and 38, to insert the following: “(3A) The Minister shall, in the prescription of information under subsection (3), have due regard to the public duty on equality and human rights.”

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 12: In page 6, between lines 37 and 38, to insert the following: “(3B) The Minister shall, in the prescription of information under subsection (3), have due regard to the need to prioritise the delivery of social housing in the State.”.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 13: In page 6, after line 41, to insert the following: “(5) Where a planning authority consults with a person under subsection (4), a written record shall be taken of such a consultation and kept by the planning authority and a copy of such record shall be placed and kept with the documents to which any application in respect of that proposed development relates.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 14: In page 6, after line 41, to insert the following: (6) With respect to information provided under subsection (3)(a) with regard to student accommodation, the Minister shall provide for consultation with educational institutions, representative student bodies and local residents set out conditions in respect of student accommodation, which the planning authority...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I do not think it is a consent process. There may be an argument in that regard to amendment No. 19. Amendment No. 14 relates to the powers the Minister is giving himself in the Bill. In section 32B(3)(a), the Minister already allows that he might prescribe information around, for example, "the proposed types of houses and student accommodation units and their design, including proposed...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I strongly support these amendments. In particular, the meeting as described will add immensely to the quality of the decisions being made and, crucially, to the outcome in terms of the quality of the residential developments that emerge from the process. It is not sufficient that individual representative members of the authority might be able to put in submissions. It is crucial that...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (Large-scale Residential Development) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (16 Nov 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: We need to stop trying to make a virtue of past mistakes. There were mistakes on the strategic housing developments. We highlighted exactly what would go wrong and it went wrong. There is the headline item here that we are bringing back planning. However, let us be clear: the Minister is partially bringing back planning but what happened with the strategic housing developments created...