Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)
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278. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if planning permission applications for monopoles and communication masts are dealt with like any other application to the planning authority; and if private companies are exempt from public scrutiny in the planning legislation for such masts. [14678/23]

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act), all development, unless specifically exempted under the Act or associated regulations, requires planning permission.

In this regard, Class 31 of Schedule 2 of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended, provides that certain classes of development carried out by a statutory undertaker authorised to provide a telecommunications service are, subject to specified conditions, exempted development from the requirement to obtain planning permission. Where the developer is not a statutory undertaker and the conditions and size thresholds specified in the exemption class are not complied with or are exceeded, planning permission is required. At locations where environmental impact assessment or appropriate assessment is required, this exemption is also removed under section 4 of the Act.

Where a developer who is not a statutory undertaker, cannot utilise the Class 31 exemption and wishes to place infrastructure at a location other than a public road, they must lodge an application for permission to a planning authority in accordance with section 34 of the Act. It is then a matter for the relevant planning authority to consider each application on a case-by-case basis and to decide to whether to grant the permission, subject to or without conditions, or to refuse permission.