Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin Bay North, Labour)
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118. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the expenditure of his Department and An Bord Pleanála in each year since January 2017 in respect of all legal services provided in appeal and judicial review applications instituted against his Department and or An Bord Pleanála by case in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38470/20]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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My Department seeks, where possible, to minimise legal costs and avails of the services of the Chief State Solicitor's office, the Attorney General's Office and the State Claims Agency in terms of the provision of legal advice and representation of the Department in planning related Judicial Review court cases and any subsequent appeals. Costs of legal services for Planning Judicial Review court cases and any subsequent appeals for the period requested, met by the Department, is as set out below.

Under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, I am specifically precluded from exercising any power or control in relation to any particular case with which a planning authority or the Board is or may be concerned, except in very specific circumstances.

The legal expenses of An Bord Pleanála is a matter for the Board. Arrangements have been put in place by all bodies under the aegis of my Department to facilitate the provision of information directly to members of the Oireachtas. This provides a speedy, efficient and cost effective system to address queries directly to the relevant bodies. The contact email address for An Bord Pleanála in this regard is Oireachtasqueries@pleanala.ie.