SF calls for law change to prohibit interventions for wealthy

Sinn Féin has called for legislation to be amended to prohibit interventions by Ministers in planning applications following Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s controversial comments in Washington DC last week.

Party leader Mary Lou McDonald referred to remarks by the Taoiseach. Mr Varadkar said he had received a call from Donald Trump before he became US president registering his opposition to a planning application for a windfarm close to his Doonbeg resort in Co Clare.

Mr Varadkar said he put in a call to the county council. But he later clarified this by saying he emailed the chief executive of the tourism board about the application. The board was subsequently among dozens of objections submitted to the proposal.

Ms McDonald said there was “scope for the perception of inappropriate contact where Ministers take such calls from wealthy business people and then raise them in this manner”.

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But Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy insisted there was "no inappropriate contact".

‘Real concern’

Responding in the Dáil he said the tourism board had a role in the matter.

Ms McDonald replied that “the relaying of this tale raised a real concern for many people because of the past experiences in this State of politicians’ and ministerial interference in the planning process and all that flowed from that.

“It’s a bad situation where a Minister takes a call from a wealthy businessman and makes such an informal intervention on their behalf. There is no way on earth that an ordinary person would have such privileged access or intervention.”

Referring to the Planning and Development Bill she asked “can we amend the law to ensure such contact is legally prohibited”?

Mr Murphy said the Planning and Development Bill on strategic infrastructure, was before the Seanad.

He added that “if the Deputy’s party wants to submit an amendment when the Bill comes before the House they are perfectly entitled to do so.”