Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Labour Party Senators for their amendments. This amendment, in effect, proposes that an LRD permission should be granted for a period of one year and removes the right for this period to be varied under section 41 of the Act of 2000. I strongly oppose this amendment. I understand we are all trying to get to that place where we make sure viable applications are effected promptly. This amendment seeks to provide that a large-scale residential development permission should be carried out within a year of granting permission. I take the manner and spirit in which this amendment was put down, but one year would be totally unrealistic for the scale of these types of developments, considering everything that needs to go into them, including post-planning and commencement. One year would be far too restrictive for all those matters. It may be that this amendment intended to provide that LRD permissions would have to commence within a 12-month period or that LRD permissions could only be extended by a 12-month period. Let us think about what we are doing here. We are looking at developments of more than 100 units. They could include between 500 and 1,000 units or more. Such a restriction would make some of these badly needed developments untenable, certainly within the timeframes that would be set.

The proposed amendment would also discriminate against LRD permissions versus other permissions. That would be problematic and would be open to challenge. This is compared with smaller-scale developments. One might apply for 99 units and then this provision would not apply. It would pose difficulties with that. If a development was smaller than 100 units, one could avail of the standard five-year grant of permission.

I will not labour the point. I understand where the Senators are trying to get to. I thank the Labour Party Senators for tabling that amendment, but due to the reasons outlined I do not think it is workable right now. Obviously, we keep any legislation passed under review. This is an important step in getting what we all want: giving these significant decisions back to our local authorities to make. I cannot accept the amendment.