Councillors in Co Meath yesterday defended their decision to amend the Draft Development Plan for the county and accused the national media of "demonising" councillors and officials.
The Dunshaughlin area members of the council yesterday met county manager Mr Joe Horan. They agreed to respond to a letter the council received from the Department of the Environment in December after the rezoning by councillors of lands in south Meath appeared to conflict with the strategic planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area.
Yesterday Dunshaughlin area Independent Cllr Brian Fitzgerald, who voted in favour of the amendments, told the council that in recent weeks his views and those of the council had been continually misrepresented in national media reports.
"I am satisfied the members here have done everything correctly and in the best interests of the common good. There is an attempt to demonise all councillors and officials in local authorities, not just in this county. To suggest all officials and councillors are the same is a downright lie and should be nailed.
"We do what we believe is in the best interests of this county. I have a letter here from every sporting body in Dunboyne supporting the action we took, that is (from) 90 per cent of the young people there. Why isn't that publicised?"
Mr Fitzgerald said the council took its decision to ensure there was enough land for affordable housing and for the proposed reopening of the railway line between Dublin and Navan.
Cllr Nick Killian (FF) referred to coverage by Irish Times Environment Editor Frank McDonald and said if councils had listened to his views down the years, nobody would be living in rural communities. "We would all be living in high-rise flats, not here but in Liverpool."
In Dunboyne, the councillors voted to rezone 120 acres of greenbelt to the east of the former railway line.
The other decisions raised by the Department of the Environment are the rezoning of 250 acres for a business park north of Clonee near the Fingal border and to make the creation of a new town at Kilbride, also near the Fingal border, an objective of the plan.
Mr Horan said the detailed response to these matters would be given to the full council for consideration this month. He believes the council can still have the final Draft Development Plan completed by February 5th.
Before the debate yesterday, Mr Horan said no land had been zoned for housing in Kilbride and, in Dunboyne, all the council had done was define the boundary of the railway line.