Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support the amendments. It is particularly egregious if an inequality is created through city and county managers being unable to engage on the one hand, while board members who are, in effect, employees of a Minister, represent a local area where representatives might not. It is part of a general concern with the Bill and the movement on planning, unfortunately, where local authority members, and those structures people have created to represent concerns and democratic expression, are precluded. Many people ran for a local authority because they were concerned, had views and expertise, and brought that to the service of their community in areas such as planning. Those people will be precluded and yet, at the same time, those who may have business interests in these areas are simply trusted and are not precluded. The Bill may preclude people with business interests, in a limited way, from the CEO role, but they can just recuse themselves when they have a conflict of interest relating to a particular decision. They can still be in the room most of the time. That creates an inequality.

Section 110, which we will come to, is another example of where there are concerns around access to justice and the democratic piece, which are the pieces we already have in planning that include access to justice principles and engagement in the planning process. We will come later to the section where I have concerns about some of the things on costs. The costs of cases creates an inequality. This is not to create a conflict because there is a lot to be contributed, but those who may have commercial and business interests and so forth are able to be in the room and recuse themselves using their judgment, as described by Senator Ward, whereas local authority members whose key role and mission is the mandate of expression are placed in a position where, in fact, caring and serving disqualifies them from being able to contribute.

As I said, I have similar concerns about access to justice and issues around participation in legal action, which will become potentially become more difficult for citizens under this Act.