Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)

Senator Daly raised the matter of planning permission that has expired. I am not in a position to give any comfort on that matter. The grounds for extension of a planning permission are for commercial, economic or technical reasons.

I intend to table further amendments on Report Stage to deal with issues such as that raised by Senator Burke. He is aware that since I took over responsibility for this area we have introduced strict regulations on energy and building standards. That is the law of the land. Even if a permission is four years old, it must still comply with the building regulations. If that is what the Senator is referring to, as Minister of State with responsibility for housing, I would not be interested in people building a structure on the basis of permission granted four years ago that did not comply with existing regulations and legislation I had brought forward.