Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 1076: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will consider amending the planning law so that effective enforcement action will be taken in respect of incomplete estates in which residents are living, before the five years during which a planning application remains valid for completion works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10236/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Planning and Development Act 2000 contains significant provisions regarding the completion of housing estates. A planning authority may require as a condition of a planning permission for the development of an estate that the development be satisfactorily completed within a period of not less than two years from the commencement of works. The 2000 Act also provides that a planning authority may attach a condition to a planning permission requiring the giving of adequate security for the satisfactory completion of a development and, if the development is not subsequently satisfactorily completed, it may apply the security to that satisfactory completion. It is the responsibility of the local authority to ensure that adequate security for the completion of estates is obtained.

Section 180 of the 2000 Act provides that if an estate is not completed satisfactorily by the developer, a planning authority must, if requested to do or by the majority of the qualified electors who are owners or occupiers of the houses involved, initiate the procedures for taking an estate in charge. The decision on whether to take the estate in charge is ultimately one for the democratically elected members. It should be noted that the enforcement of planning control provisions have been considerably strengthened in the 2000 Act. Fines have been greatly increased. Planning authorities are obliged to follow up genuine complaints about breaches of planning control within a given time period and are entitled to retain fines imposed by courts for planning offences. Moreover, that an application for retention permission has been made is no longer a defence to a prosecution for unauthorised development.

The 2000 Act contains a further relevant provision in this regard. Section 35 provides that the planning authorities may apply to the High Court for authorisation to refuse to grant planning permission to a developer who has substantially failed to comply with the conditions of a previous permission. A Private Members' Bill, the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2005, proposes to amend this provision. The Government did not oppose the second reading of the Bill despite reservations about possible legal difficulties. The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government is considering the Bill and has sought the advice of the Office of the Attorney General.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Question 1077: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of quarries legally registered with planning permission in County Donegal; if he can provide a list of them and when they were last inspected; if the same procedures apply to older established quarries that predate the introduction of presently applied legislation on quarrying; and if not, when the present legislation will be applied to those older established quarries. [10261/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Planning authorities are responsible for the granting of planning permission and the registration of quarries within their functional area. The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government does not have information on the number of quarries with planning permission registered with Donegal County Council. Section 261 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 introduced a one-off system of registration for all quarries, other than those for which planning permission was granted in the five years prior to 28 April 2004. Under the registration system, quarry operators must supply full details of their operations to the planning authority, including information on the area of the quarry, the material being extracted, the hours of operation and the traffic, noise and dust generated by the quarry. The information must be supplied by 27 April 2005.

A planning authority may, following registration, impose conditions on the operation of quarries which were in existence before the introduction of the planning code in October 1964. In certain circumstances, it may require an application for planning permission and the submission of an environmental impact statement. Planning authorities will be able to restate, modify or add to conditions on the operation of post-October 1964 quarries which received planning permission more than five years ago.