Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The new section 6 does not provide a guarantee of a member who will have environmental expertise, which we had under the previous legislation. In that regard, it is a backwards step. The Minister of State is right there are very important laws in place, such as Fit for 55. There are more than 200 pieces of legislation coming through, including a lot of new legislation in respect of building regulations, which will be extremely relevant, even leaving aside the nature restoration law. These are laws that will have direct implications on building. Those are being negotiated at the moment.

The problem is there is already a lot of European law but An Bord Pleanála has not been applying it properly. That is not my opinion; that is what has been found in the courts on multiple occasions. I therefore do not regard having good laws as a safeguard if we do not have a structure and a system within An Bord Pleanála that looks at them properly and applies them. This costs everybody time and it costs money for the State. Again and again, individuals, groups or communities have had to take judicial reviews to re-remind An Bord Pleanála of the existence of the European laws and ask it to apply them. This is a point of debate and it is one that should be examined very carefully. There are constant proposals to make judicial reviews more difficult when the problem is not judicial reviews. The problem is the law is not being applied properly in the first place. The European law is not going to change massively. We constantly try to build in evasions and exceptions in laws here but the fact is European law is, as the Minister of State said, very strong. However, we need a body that is equipped to apply it, and not simply on a temporary basis with an individual selected by the Minister to come in on a kind of project for a year or two. There should be a permanent board member with environmental expertise. That is not guaranteed anymore in the proposal from the Government. That is a fundamental fact and that is why I will have to press my amendments.