Paddy Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I listened to the number of points made by Senator McDowell. He made some great points about the legislation. As a group of Senators, we met the regulator on one occasion. The regulator told us there is absolutely nothing that councillors cannot put into a county development plan. They can do everything. I would like clarity on that point. Councillors tell us they can do nothing and can put nothing into development plans because the managers will take it out. They cannot go against the advice of the manager or the regulator. The regulator told us that there is absolutely nothing that councillors cannot put into the plan, whether it is one-off housing, industrial zoning, zoning for housing or whatever. There seems to be a conflict as to what councillors can do, what the regulator says they can do and what the regulator does. That is what the regulator told us. When you speak to councillors, they say they cannot do it. I am sure that the training courses around the country must have addressed those issues at one stage or another but the councillors still say that what they can do in respect of planning and zoning is limited, as is their influence over the county development plan.