Results 3,521-3,540 of 6,905 for speaker:Cian O'Callaghan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: The representatives of Wind Energy Ireland gave us their view of the proposed fines by An Bord Pleanála. Has the IIP a view on the proposed fines? Are they helpful or not?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: I have a question for the representatives of Property Industry Ireland. In the annexe to their opening statement, they talk about wanting An Bord Pleanála to retain its powers to grant permission for developments that may materially contravene development plan policy or objectives. In the rest of their contribution, they have been talking about the importance of certainty and reducing...

Emergency Housing Measures: Motion [Private Members] (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion, which the Social Democrats will support. It contains a number of sensible proposals and measures which we are happy to support. We would go a little bit further in some areas, but that is a matter of detail. The fact that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has not shown up for this important debate says a...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: I ask the Minister how much money the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is returning to central Exchequer funds from 2022. According to the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, approximately €241 million of the Minister’s housing budget from 2022 is being returned to the central Exchequer. This is money should have...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: How much of the Department's funding has the Minister returned?

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Minister has not answered my question.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: I thank everyone who has come in. I have some questions for the board and some for the Office of the Planning Regulator. I will probably only get to the Office of the Planning Regulator in this slot so I will come back in again. I will be out for a little while at 11 a.m. as per usual but I will be back afterwards. On the proposed section 326, which is about the review of planning...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Mr. Ryan feels that on the basis of the team being quite small, it would not make sense to have a statutory or formal appeal mechanism.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Appeal is good practice in terms of accountability in any organisation. Sometimes, for whatever reason, an organisation can get useful feedback from that process as well and so the issue is the absence of that. In my reading of head 328, there is no obligation to publish a report once a review of planning functions has been undertaken by the office. In terms of transparency and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: My read and interpretation of that are that, regardless of the caveats, "may" continues to pertain. Is Mr. Cussen's interpretation that reviews "shall" be published subject to those caveats?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Would Mr. Cussen be in favour of this provision being clearer to provide that reviews "shall" be published, subject to the caveats that are listed?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: The OPR will be able to intervene in clear breaches of national policy but in terms of potential ambiguity between detailed local plans and general national policy, I cannot see how the Bill resolves that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: The use of the phrase "may publish" is significant because it also means the office may not publish something. That is where I see the question.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: I wish to follow on from an issue we raised with the Department a couple of days ago that concerned head 8 of this Bill and section 5 declarations. Does the board or the Office of the Planning Regulator have data on how many section 5 declarations, which have been appealed to An Bord Pleanála, are overturned? Is there a breakdown of who seeks the section 5 declarations that go to An...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: That would be useful. Head 420 concerns the annual reports by An Bord Pleanála and gives a timeline of "not later than the 30th day of June in each year." Is there current legislative requirements around that? There is. What is the situation with the 2021 report? Has it been published and, if not, when will it be published?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Head 402 concerns the declaration of interests and provides for the small part-ownership of a site through shares. It refers to one hundredth part of a site or less, or €13,000 or less, whichever is the lesser. I understand the logic whereby if I own shares in some company I am not going to know what sites the company owns and so forth. Are those provisions robust enough not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Yes, absolutely. I wonder in terms of this Bill if we are trying to create a culture of absolute avoidance of any doubt whatsoever or any questions. Technically, under that Bill, you could have shares in one of the large publicly listed developers in Ireland and as long as it is worth less than €13,000 or less than one hundredth of that company then one is fine. Does that mean it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (9 Feb 2023)

Cian O'Callaghan: Recently there has been an issue, and it has been documented, of a problem of informal requests to inspectors to amend their reports by members of the board. Is that something that should or should not be covered by this legislation? Is that the detail that this Bill should get into or not?