Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 30: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if, in view of the downturn in the building industry, he will make extra provision for the completion of estates in cases in which the developer or builder is no longer in business. [36397/08]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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My Department issued updated policy guidance to planning authorities on 26 February 2008 on Taking in Charge of Residential Developments/Management Arrangements. This required each planning authority to develop or update, as appropriate, its policy on taking in charge by the end of June 2008 in accordance with the policy guidance, the main principles of which are as follows:

Certain core facilities/infrastructure to be taken in charge on request — public roads and footpaths, unallocated surface parking areas, public lighting, public water supply, foul and storm water drainage and public open spaces;

The matter of taking in charge will be addressed at pre-planning application stage and in the planning application the developer will be asked clearly to identify the area to be taken in charge;

Planning authorities will take all necessary measures to ensure proper completion of the development, in particular through securing adequate bonds, inspection of construction and the taking of enforcement action when necessary;

The procedures for taking in charge will begin promptly on foot of a request by the majority of the residents in the development or by the developer, as appropriate. Protocols, including time frames, must be set out by planning authorities to respond to requests for taking in charge;

n relation to older estates, priority must continue to be given to resolving those estates that have been left unfinished or not taken in charge for the longest period.

A new local government service indicator in relation to the taking in charge of estates has been introduced, which will provide benchmark data from 2009 onwards for monitoring the taking in charge process. The information to be reported will include: the number of estates that were taken in charge in the year in question; the total number of dwellings in these estates; and the number of estates in respect of which enforcement action was taken.

I will keep the issue of taking in charge under review and I will be informed in this regard by the information provided by local authorities for the service indicators report; the report for 2008 will be available in the middle of 2009.