Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I raise yet again rural housing guidelines. I have said it time and time again. I printed off all of the times I spoke in this Seanad in relation to rural housing. For five years, we have been told they are in the making and they will be published in five, six or seven weeks' time. Nothing has happened. It is continuously raised with me.I spent the last few weeks touring around the country and meeting practitioners of planning, including local government planners and our city and county councillors. I was in three different counties last week and all the people I met asked me what was going on in relation to the rural housing guidelines. They asked me why it was the case that their sons and daughters and constituents could not get planning permission to build a home on their lands. These are people who are involved in farming, quarrying, forestry, etc. They have demonstrated an economic need in respect of these rural constituencies. I raised this matter in this House with the Leader in the run-up to the European elections. We seem to be being continuously told that these guidelines are coming.

Today, we are looking at this legislation and I will be raising this matter during the next two or three days again. I ask all Senators, from all parties and none, to put the pressure on to get an exact commitment concerning what is happening with rural housing. It is not a question of whether it will or will not happen. We are constantly being told and politicians are constantly telling their constituents and local representatives that this is happening. Why is it not happening? After all these years, why can we not get a commitment in this regard? Is the Minister committed to rolling out reasonable rural housing guidelines to enable people all over this country to live and to work and to be supportive of their extended family and of their principal farmland economic activities?

This is an important matter. For some reason, though, there seems to be a clog in the system. It has been suggested to me that we should be careful what we wish for. It may be because there are differences and some parts of the Government do not want this to happen, but this is not enough of a reason to do nothing about it. I am getting a strong and clear message from our city and, more importantly, our county councillors, who are asking what is happening in the principal Houses, the Oireachtas, where the legislation should happen. I ask that when we come back we have a debate on this matter. In the meantime, I ask the Cathaoirleach and everybody else with contacts in the Government, and clearly there are these contacts, if we can progress the delivery of rural housing guidelines that will allow people to live on the land they were born to or inherited and have a right to be on.