Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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663. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for cost of public service delivery in the relevant areas. [23259/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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664. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for infrastructure costs in the relevant areas. [23260/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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665. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for the local environment, including risk of water contamination as a consequence of reliance on private septic tanks. [23261/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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666. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for public health as a consequence of reliance on private wells for household water and the propensity of private wells to become contaminated with VTEC and other dangerous infections. [23262/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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667. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for carbon emissions as a consequence of the less efficient heat retention by detached homes. [23263/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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668. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for carbon emissions as a consequence of reliance on private cars for transportation. [23264/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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669. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for biodiversity as a consequence of reliance on transportation by private car given the greater biodiversity of remote areas and the land use implications of private cars (details supplied). [23265/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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670. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for natural disaster resilience given the greater fragility of infrastructure and in remote areas and distance from emergency responders. [23266/25]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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671. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1221 of 29 April 2025, for details of analysis undertaken by his Department with respect to the implications of expansion of rural one-off housing for unanticipated household costs, considering that there is greater exposure to fluctuations in global fuel prices where there is greater reliance on private cars, and in light of research suggesting households underestimate costs of keeping a private car (details supplied). [23267/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 663, 664, 665, 666, 667, 668, 669, 670 and 671 together.

In relation to the issues raised, the Deputy will be aware that the revised National Planning Framework (NPF) was approved by Government and both Houses of the Oireachtas in April 2025 and sets out an all-of-Government high level vision for the future development of our country to 2040.

The NPF sets out high-level national policies and objectives, which are essential to achieving proper planning and sustainable development, with a clear vision to guide future development and investment decisions. The strategy sets out the spatial planning policy approach to accommodating projected population growth to 2040 in a manner which delivers balanced regional development, based on a city-focused and compact growth pattern of development intended to reverse the pattern of sprawl that have been a feature over recent decades.

The policy focus in the NPF on ‘compact growth’, which addresses the need for a more sustainable form of development in Ireland’s cities and towns, in particular. This policy initiative was introduced in response to an identified need to counter the trend of urban sprawl, to support the targeted delivery of infrastructure services, to promote cities and towns to be self-sustaining and viable places in which to live and work.

To this end, specific performance targets are set out in the NPF in relation to the proportion of new residential development that should take place within the existing built up area of settlements of different scales. There is a target to deliver at least half (50%) of all new homes that are targeted in the five Cities and suburbs and at least 30% of all new homes that are targeted in settlements other than the five Cities and their suburbs, within their existing built-up footprints.

With regard to rural areas, the NPF complements and builds on existing government policy set out in Our Rural Future 2021-2025 and Our Living Islands National Islands Policy 2023-2033. It recognises that the Irish countryside is, and will continue to be, a living and lived-in landscape focusing on the requirements of rural economies and rural communities, based on agriculture, forestry, energy, inland waterways, marine, tourism and rural enterprise, while at the same time protecting the capacity of the receiving environment and avoiding ribbon and over-spill development from urban areas.

National Policy Objective (NPO) 24 of the Revised NPF seeks to support the sustainable development of rural areas by encouraging growth and arresting decline in areas that have experienced low population growth or decline in recent decades and by managing the growth of areas that are under strong urban influence to avoid overdevelopment, while sustaining vibrant rural communities.

In addition, it should be noted that as part of the preparation of the first Revision to the National Planning Framework, a number of environmental assessments were carried out, including Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), Appropriate Assessment (AA) and Strategic Flood Risk Appraisal (SFRA) which, collectively aim to provide for a high level of protection of the environment and to contribute to the integration of environmental considerations into the preparation and adoption of plans with a view to promoting sustainable development. These types of assessment are also required to be undertaken by regional assemblies and planning authorities when preparing regional and local level strategies and plans, required to also be consistent with the policies and objectives of the NPF.

The local authority development plan is the principal planning policy tool to achieve these objectives at local level. Under section 10(2)(n) of the Planning and Development Act 2000 planning authorities are required to include objectives within their development plan for the promotion of sustainable settlement and transportation strategies in urban and rural areas including the promotion of measures to reduce energy demand in response to the likelihood of increases in energy and other costs due to long-term decline in non-renewable resources, and to reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and address the necessity of adaptation to climate change, taking account of the local authority climate action plan.

In deciding individual planning applications, planning authorities are restricted to considering the proper planning and sustainable development of the area, regard being had to, inter alia, the development plan and the policy of the Government, the Minister or any other Minister of the Government. By virtue of section 34(13) of the Act, a person shall not be entitled solely by reason of a permission to carry out any development e.g. where other statutory obligations may apply.

Since the publication of the current Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines in 2005 (which continue to have effect in addition to subsequent clarifications and national policy changes in the NPF) there have been important changes to our planning system. Most notably, obligations under European Directives and international agreements relating to the management and protection of the environment and adapting to and mitigating climate change have become more central to the operation of the system.

Updated Rural Housing Guidelines are currently being prepared by my Department. The updated guidelines will expand on the high level spatial planning policy of the National Planning Framework, in particular on National Policy Objective 28 which relates to rural housing. This objective makes a clear policy distinction between rural areas under urban influence (i.e. areas within the commuter catchment of cities, large towns and centres of employment) on the one hand, and other rural areas where population levels may be low or declining, on the other. NPO 28 is also aligned with the established approach whereby considerations of social or economic need are to be applied by planning authorities in rural areas under urban influence.

The draft Rural Housing Guidelines will also set out relevant planning criteria to be applied in local authority development plans for rural housing, based on the high level policy framework set by the NPF. The guidelines will continue to allow county development plans to provide for housing in the countryside based on the considerations detailed in NPO 28, and will also highlight the need to manage development in certain areas, such as the areas around cities and larger towns and environmentally sensitive areas, in order to avoid over-development.

While planning policy is a national, as opposed to an EU competence, due care is being taken to ensure the updated guidelines will not operate to conflict with fundamental EU freedoms, comply with EU environmental legislative requirements and have due regard to decisions of the European Court of Justice. The draft planning guidelines will address these complex environmental and legal issues, while also providing a framework for the sustainable management of housing in rural areas.

To ensure compliance with all of these considerations, the Guidelines will need to be subject to environmental assessment and legal review, following which it is intended that they will be published for a period of public consultation.