Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire freisin. I agree with most of what has been said by others. It is hard for us to overstate the difficulty that councillors have had in doing just their general business over the past year or more, but going through the development plan process via videoconference is incredibly difficult. There is no opportunity afterwards to catch officials on the margins or ask someone a question one does not wish to ask online. It is appropriate that we recognise just how difficult a job our local authority members have had in recent times.

I agree with the suggestion that the two thirds majority stipulation is overly onerous. It is difficult at the best of times to get majorities on local authorities, never mind two thirds majorities. We should give more latitude. In general, the Bill tries to do that, which is welcome.

Although the timescales are important in terms of the making and framing of a development plan, the Bill is overly prescriptive because it creates pressure points in the process at local authority level. That is not necessary. We can rely on local authorities to do the job they need to do.

An issue that has arisen since the Local Government Reform Act 2014, which amended the principal Act in this regard, relates to the variation of development plans. While that matter is not specifically covered by this Bill, there may be a missed opportunity to correct the 2014 Act's unintended consequence of removing the rights of councillors to vary a plan midway through its progress. Although the Bill deals with the making of plans and councillors should use every opportunity they can to make their points at that stage, issues can arise during the currency of a development plan, yet the law as it stands prevents local authority members from initiating a variation to it once it has been made. We in the Oireachtas always say that the plan belongs to the councillors, who are the people elected at local level, but that is not true because they cannot initiate a variation without the consent or acquiescence of the executive. That is a further concentration of powers into the hands of unelected executive members of local authorities. Will the Minister consider accepting an amendment that would amend the 2014 Act to allow members of local authorities to own and control their development plans properly throughout the plans' lives rather than at just the time they are being made and to initiate variations?It still requires a majority of a council to approve such a thing. It still requires the process whereby it goes through the local authority and is discussed. It is only right and proper that councillors have the power to make this variation of their own motion and not rely on executives. I always say the chief executive will never knock on the doors of constituents to ask them what they think about something. Councillors are the closest to the people. Councillors understand what people want and they should have ultimate control over any variation during the lifetime of the plan.