Results 11,601-11,620 of 15,092 for speaker:Eoin Ó Broin

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I am done with amendment No. 51.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: To be brief, section 9(3) states: "Development shall not be exempted development for the purposes of this Act if an environmental impact assessment or an appropriate assessment of the development is required." That makes complete sense but I want to broaden that to include the following phrase, "or where the activity may have a significant impact on the environment”.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Yes, of course, do not rush. It is amendment No. 54.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: It is amendment No. 54. We are dealing with exempted developments. One of the categories that should not be deemed exempt is where the development requires an environmental impact assessment, EIA, or an appropriate assessment, AA. I support that. I am looking to broaden it to include an additional category where the activity may have a significant impact on the environment. My argument...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: We previously asked why there has not been a specific assessment for compliance with the Aarhus Convention. We understand from the officials that there was general legal advice on the Bill. I do not think it is correct for the Minister to be so definitive in saying that means it is compliant because if somebody challenges the Bill, it would ultimately be up to a judge to decide that. There...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: No, I said environmental infringements.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I want to make a point and then I will ask a question about the Minister's amendment No. 50. As to who decides, it is the Minister who decides by way of regulation, as is often the case in these matters. In lots of planning legislation, including in this Bill, we have words like "exceptional" or "significant" and the purpose of those are then set out in regulations. I will not labour that...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: The amendment applies it to all of section 4.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Perfect.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: Do you wish me to speak briefly to amendment No. 63?

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

Eoin Ó Broin: There is a difference between State bodies and prescribed-----

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I was just making the point that State bodies and prescribed bodies are not the same. I am interested in seeing where in what the Minister has in front of him it sets out prescribed bodies other than State bodies.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: That is precisely the problem. The Minister may not do it.

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

Eoin Ó Broin: There is a greater likelihood of something happening if it is in primary legislation rather than in a regulation or not legislated for at all. Therefore, having it is better than not having it. While I appreciate the Minister said he would consider this provision, he went on to say he did not believe it was necessary.

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. 40: In page 38, to delete lines 21 to 24 and substitute the following: "(4) Where regulations are proposed to be made under subsection (1)of section 9, or under Part 9, or subsection (2)ofsection 412, or an order is proposed to be made under Part 9, a draft of the regulations or the draft order, shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the regulations or...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I have three follow-up questions. I will press the Minister of State for additional information on whether there is a timeline for the introduction of statutory timelines for the board. The answer may be "No" and that it is not possible at this stage but a sense of when the Government hopes or expects to introduce these would be helpful. Second, my question on staffing and resources was...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: There is a lot of history to this particular issue. It is worth putting some of that on the record of the committee. This is not a minor amendment. I support the Chair's amendment. It is maybe a more elegant version of my own. We used to have national spatial plans. Those national spatial plans were not implementable because they were not statutory. Therefore, a decision was rightly...

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

Eoin Ó Broin: I am convinced. That is even more disappointing. Let me reiterate the point. Why do we have votes at the end of anything? The Minister of State is saying that there is such a great volume of consultation and involvement of various Members, although there is no structure involved in the Oireachtas whatsoever. Why do we have a vote at the end of anything? One reason is to ensure that it...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (22 Feb 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: I have a point for the Minister to consider as he is deliberating on this between now and Report Stage. I am not necessarily looking for a response. I understand what he is trying to do. There are risks of overdevelopment from the approach he is taking. There are potentially better ways of addressing the problem, which is that gap between the granted permission and the activation of those...