Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

326. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he has requests for sanction for approval for additional resources including recruitment at An Bord Pleanála; if so, the date such requests were received by his Department; when decisions will be made in respect of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22566/22]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

In October 2021, my Department approved the 2021-2022 An Bord Pleanála (the Board) Workforce Plan which provides for an additional 24 posts across a range of technical and administrative grades including the setting up of a new Marine and Climate Unit to implement the role assigned to the Board under the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021 and associated projects under the Climate Action Plan 2021. These additional 24 approved posts increase overall approved Board staffing by 13% from its previous total of 183 staff (excluding board members).

Following an updated assessment by the Board of resourcing issues likely to emerge as a result of planning applications for the National Development Plan and other infrastructure projects as well as legislative changes, a new workforce plan for 2022-2023 requesting further additional posts was submitted to my Department by the Board on 1st April 2022. The Board subsequently revised this plan, and resubmitted their 2022-2023 workforce plan to my Department on 22 April 2022. My Department is actively engaging with the Board in relation to this revised workforce plan. I understand that a separate staff resourcing plan for projects associated with the Maritime Area Planning Act, 2021 is expected from the Board shortly and this will also be considered in the context of the proposed Workforce Plan 2022-'23 .