Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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98. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government to provide a list of statutory undertakers under the Water Services Acts 2007 and 2013, the Planning and Development Act 2000, the Local Government Act 2001 and any statutory instruments subsequent to the stated enactments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21743/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Section 2(1) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, defines “statutory undertaker” to mean a person, for the time being, authorised by or under any enactment or instrument under an enactment to

(a) construct or operate a railway, canal, inland navigation, dock, harbour or airport,

(b) provide, or carry out works for the provision of, gas, electricity or telecommunications services, or

(c) provide services connected with, or carry out works for the purposes of the carrying on of the activities of, any public undertaking.

The specific persons or bodies coming within the definition of “statutory undertaker” are not specified in the 2000 Act or the Regulations made thereunder. However, the 2000 Act refers to “statutory undertaker”, without elaboration, in section 4(1)(g), subsections (5)(b) and (6) of section 182A and section 254(2)(c). The Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended, make reference to statutory undertakers as follows:

- Articles 17(3) and 223(3) refer to a statutory undertaker authorised to provide a telecommunications service of overhead telecommunications lines;

- Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations includes the following references in classes of exempted development labelled as “Development by statutory undertakers”: the Irish Gas Board (Class 25), An Post (Class 30), a railway undertaking (Class 23), a harbour authority (Class 24), a gas undertaking (other than the Irish Gas Board) (Class 25), an undertaker authorised to provide an electricity service (Classes 26 to 28), an electricity undertaking (Class 29), a statutory undertaker authorised to provide a telecommunications service (Class 31), a person to whom an aerodrome licence within the meaning of the Irish Aviation Authority (Aerodromes and Visual Ground Aids) Order 1998 has been granted (Class 32), a statutory undertaker (in the context of inland waterways) (Class 35); and

- Part 2 (Advertisements) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations refers to a statutory undertaker in Class 12 (exempted development).

There are no statutory undertakers defined under the Water Services Acts 2007 – 2014; authorised persons include the Minister, Irish Water and Water Services Authorities.

There are no provisions in the Local Government Act 2001 which define statutory undertakers.