-----in certain other areas of the Bill, of previous embedded approaches to the notion of family and the notion of relationship that are very persistent and come through again and again. They need to be tackled everywhere they are manifest. I urge the Minister to reflect on that matter as we approach Report Stage, on which I look forward to his engagement.

Some of the amendments I am going to discuss later would have potential consequential implications in regard to section 2, so I may bring amendments on Report Stage that will address and reflect the issues that I will be debating in regard to my other amendments on other sections.

I move amendment No. 1: In page 4, to delete lines 3 to 9. This amendment would delete section 3(b) of this Bill, which would amend section 34(12A) of the Planning and Development Act 2000. The Government proposes in subsection (12A) the substitution of “an application in respect of the following development shall be deemed not to have required, and not to require, a determination as to whether an environmental impact assessment is required” for the current wording, which is that “if an application for permission h…

I thank the Minister for the clarification because it read as a conflict. That is why I had not sought to remove section 3(a) and section 3(b). Perhaps the Minister will confirm if it is the case that the mechanisms in respect of substitute consent will not be applied in regard to the unauthorised development of land where an EIA or appropriate assessment is required, or is determined to be required. If he could confirm that, it would allow me to withdraw the amendment.

I will withdraw the amendment but I reserve the right to bring it back because I would like to be reassured in regard to the question. As the Minister has described it, the legislation does allow that one would not be able to give substitute consent in situations where either an EIA or an appropriate assessment might be required. I want to be very clear on that. However, there is still a concern in regard to situations where a determination might have been required. I am trying to figure out how the determination a…

I move amendment No. 3: In page 4, between lines 36 and 37, to insert the following: “(c) the Board shall indicate to the applicant what further actions may be required in light of such a refusal.”,”. This amendment would insert a new paragraph into the proposed new subsection (37L) of the principal Act. It proposes that in situations where the application for a substitute consent has been refused, the board would also indicate what are the actions consequent on such a refusal. For example, will it relate to a chan…

It seems the Minister is correct. In effect, the amendment should be inserted at line 27. It seems to have been placed incorrectly. Effectively, the issue that is being addressed in section 4 is the issuing of refusals, so that is the section where the amendment would properly lie. Nonetheless, it would still be useful at this point, in order that we can go forward as constructively as possible in respect of Report Stage, for the Minister to indicate his perspective on the inclusion of requirements with a refusal. …

I will withdraw the amendment and reserve the right to reintroduce it on Report Stage.

I will speak to the section because it is a substantial area of the Bill. I disagree with the rulings in respect of my amendments. As I have indicated, I will raise this with the Seanad Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight. There has been an overinterpretation in respect of these issues and I am concerned we are moving towards a position where, effectively, Parliament is being constrained in respect of its appropriate work relating to decisions-----

It is important because that is a fundamental balance in terms of, if we have a situation where-----

I will speak to the section. I wish to highlight certain issues in this regard. A major concern relates to section 5(a), which introduces a new subsection that would, in effect, allow a person applying for substitute consent in respect of the development of land that the person has undertaken without appropriate permissions to apply at the same time for a new and different development of the land. As the land is the subject of an application for substitute consent, the person, in effect, is being allowed to apply f…

I have a related question. I want to ask a very specific question on this. This section proposes to insert the phrase "in respect of development of land". Will the Minister clarify what exactly is meant by the addition of this phrase?

I disagree. This provision does provide an incentive because the disincentive in the legislation is the requirement to seek substitute consent but that applies in any event. If I have a site I want to build on and I have built something on it for which I do not have permission, there is then the question of seeking substitute consent. What is very interesting is that this reveals the idea, another flaw in the Bill, that basically the decision on whether to apply for substitute consent becomes a discretionary one on…

It is not a matter of what An Bord Pleanála would do. The issue is that a stage would be skipped. The question of the two issues being bundled is not one that I raised. The Minister raised the fact that having the two applications combined creates a different dynamic. It is not about each thing being considered on its merits. The fact is that a substitute consent application is considered at the same time as a new planning application. I have no problem with An Bord Pleanála considering planning applications after …

No. The only disadvantage the Minister has outlined is the disadvantage of having an unlawful application following which people need to apply to fix it retrospectively, which is a matter entirely within their control and is already subject to a substitute consent process. The additional hurdle of substitute consent is intrinsic to them. However, the new planning application provides them with a different, advantageous route to that planning permission compared with somebody who does not have an unlawful developmen…

As opposed to sequentially.

The like-with-like here is a sequential process where one seeks to substitute consent and then one seeks a planning permission versus a simultaneous process where one seeks substitute consent and a planning permission at the same time and effectively get to skip a stage in the process. I think it is a concern. I accept we disagree and because we disagree so fundamentally on it, it is very difficult for me to amend this section. It would be worth considering even just the point on related development because it is d…

I want to indicate that it is my intention on Report Stage to table amendments in respect of the section. I refer particularly to the issue around where a decision to impose a condition that arises is materially different in respect of the terms and conditions from a recommendation report of the person assigned to report on the application for permission on behalf of the board. That is a positive measure but I may look to further strengthen these provisions. I am aware that we have had a considerable number of case…

The section allows for the area where the Minister might provide for regulations in such matters as procedure and administration. It would be useful to understand exactly what the problem is at the moment with the system we have. We already have a system for applying for substitute consent. Section 5 expands it and mainly seems to be an expansion to allow for simultaneous new applications. It would be useful for us to have reports on a few issues. This is where the regulations may come in. These may be issues that …

Perhaps I should wait until section 12. This is one of the areas that will be coming to more sections later. We are deleting some of the powers that local authorities have at the moment in requiring an application for substitute consent. I am not sure if it is in this section or a later one. I want to indicate my intention to try to address the issue. Even if we wanted to have this alternate route-----