Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 238: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the discussions she or her Department has had with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government with regard to proposed changes to Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 as amended in 2002. [36106/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that the provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2000 do not place any onus on developers to provide school sites other than at market rates. I am keeping an open mind as to whether legislative change might be of assistance or prove the best way forward here. In this regard, my Department has commenced exploratory discussions with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. I remind the House, however, that any changes in this area would require careful consideration in the context of constitutional protection for private property and in weighing up how any reduction in the price per acre of any land given for schools development might impact on the unit costs and affordability of houses developed on the remaining lands.