Results 1,141-1,160 of 7,138 for speaker:Cian O'Callaghan

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: My view is that legal advice and research are two separate things. Us looking to see the research on this is entirely legitimate. I think if it were put in the public domain, we might understand some of the rationale here and so forth. I have a question on this. The European Union Court of Justice in the Puškár judgment made clear the need to evidence any changes in EU law...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Government will not provide the evidence to make clear these changes that are needed as per the Puškár judgment. Is that the situation? We will not be provided with it.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Respectfully, when it comes to legislation, it should not be a matter of imagination, but hard data, evidence and facts. That is what we have been asking the Minister of State for. We do not want people imagining things. We just want to see what the data and evidence are. Will he provide them to us? Can the legislation and the changes the Government is making be justified by hard data...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The proposed changes to judicial reviews and the data we are seeking now.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Minister of State said he is satisfied that this proposal is Aarhus compliant and that the Attorney General has told the Department it is compliant, which is the standard response when I raise anything to do with Aarhus. We are told that the Attorney General has looked at this and that it is Aarhus compliant. Has the Attorney General specifically looked at the Aarhus Convention...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Will the Minister of State provide us with a note on how that office believes the proposal to be Aarhus compliant?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: It is amendments Nos. 955 and 956.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I have only spoken to amendment No. 954.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: We established from the discussion that there is no analysis or projection on what time savings the proposed substantial changes to judicial reviews may or may not lead to. There may be a hope around that but if there is no data or analysis on it, then that is clearly not the rationale for these changes. The Minister of State also said this will not lead to a reduction in the number of...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Exactly. The issue of undertakings relates to things that can block access to justice in terms of being prohibitively expensive. That is a positive to remove undertakings.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I am fine on amendment No. 955. Are we going to move to amendment No. 956?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Cathaoirleach said he does not want to discuss costs, or can we do so on amendment No. 956?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Amendment No. 956 is related to costs and environmental matters.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: There has been some discussion relevant to amendment No. 956 already and I appreciate there will be further discussion later. As the Minister of State will be aware, however, there have been many changes in costs over the years. One of the issues with the proposed changes is that, effectively, the State is going to have full control over the rates that are paid. That means the State will...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Yes.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Has the Minister of State no concerns about what he is proposing in terms of how this might affect the number of people who seek leave for judicial review? I am not saying the current system is perfect, but one of the issues around the current system, which I have seen myself, is that it allows for representatives to approach people for legal representation on the basis of a no foal, no fee...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Yes.