Planning Issues
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-01
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Christopher O'Sullivan (FF), Cork South-West

I thank the Deputies for raising this issue. I congratulate Deputy Ennis on his recent election. What a day for his family, friends and supporters. It is an incredible achievement. It is great to see the two constituency TDs from the same party working so closely together. It is not that common, by the way. I am grateful that they have raised this issue.
I appreciate that there is a sense of vibrancy in Stoneybatter.
I am familiar with it. There are some great food locations and cafes, so I understand where the Deputies are coming from with this.
The response that I am going to read out was drafted not knowing what angle the Deputies were coming from, but I might come back to it in the supplementary response.
This gives me an opportunity to update Members on the current procedures governing planning application decisions in general, noting the restrictions on my ability to comment on individual planning decisions. I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Browne. I wish to explain at the outset that the role of Minister in relation to the planning system is primarily to provide a policy and legislative framework for the planning authorities, An Coimisiún Pleanála and the Office of the Planning Regulator, OPR, in performing their statutory planning functions.
Under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage shall not exercise any power or control in relation to any particular case with which a planning authority or An Coimisiún Pleanála is or may be concerned. This means that the Minister is explicitly prevented from intervening in such cases, which is of utmost importance to maintain the independence of the planning authority or commission. In fairness, Deputy Gannon already alluded to how he was aware of that.
All development proposals require planning permission, unless they are specifically exempted under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, or the supplementary Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended. Where any person is unsure if planning permission is required, they may seek a declaration from the relevant planning authority under section 5 of the 2000 Act as to whether their case "is or is not development or is or is not exempted development" within the meaning of the Act.
When a person submits a planning application under section 34 of the 2000 Act, irrespective of whether the proposed development is located in an urban or rural location in any county, the relevant planning authority, in making its decision, shall have regard to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area. It is a matter for the relevant planning authority to consider each application on a case-by-case basis and to decide, in accordance with the provisions contained in the legislation, whether to grant the permission, subject to or without conditions, or to refuse permission.
Where an individual has participated in the planning process or is directly affected by a planning decision of a planning authority, they may lodge an appeal to the commission in accordance with section 37 of the 2000 Act. Furthermore, any person who has participated in the appeals process, or shows that they have sufficient interest, may seek a judicial review of the relevant decision of the commission. In addition to the appeals process, if any person has a planning issue that is systemic in nature, they can refer the matter to the OPR or a referral may be made to the Office of the Ombudsman if the issue relates to an individual matter, such as the way a local authority has carried out its administrative functions.
The response goes on in the same vein. I take the Deputies’ point, and they will understand how limited the Department and, by extension, the Minister and I as a Minister of State in that Department are in relation to commenting on individual cases. The Deputies made a point about the standard application of enforcement across the city. That should be same when it comes to dereliction. I know that there are beautiful Georgian buildings on that side of the city and that Deputy Gannon has been raising the issue of dereliction for a long time. He may perceive that there has been a lack of attention to that issue and all of sudden there is attention on this particular issue that the Deputies are referring to. I take the Deputies’ point and I might come back to it in my supplementary response.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-01/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:06+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-01