John Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We always have to think of the unintended consequences of what is proposed. If I understand the Senator correctly, what she is actually suggesting is that if a person gets planning permission for a site he or she owns, the person will not be able to enter a partnership or sell the site on to another party. The Government is committed to introducing a tax on vacant sites. If one takes the example of a farmer on the edge of Waterford city who has a site that has been zoned for residential development, he or she is being forced to apply for planning permission for that site. That is fine, and it is right and proper. However, he or she may not have the wherewithal to develop that site because his or her expertise lies in farming, not in development. The consequence of the amendment would be that he or she is unable to sell that site to another party for development. Although I appreciate what the Senator is trying to do, we must always be mindful of the unintended consequences of what we are trying to do. It really bothers me that the amendment proposes putting such a restriction on people who have development land but may not have the ability to develop it.