Sir, – I read with interest the article on the mounting number of legal challenges against decisions by An Bord Pleanála on applications under the Strategic Housing Development system. (“Legal challenges brought against big Dublin housing schemes”, June 7th)
This legislation was introduced in 2016 to “fastrack” projects in a bid to tackle the housing crisis. It was introduced to bypass local authority planning offices for large developments and make the planning application a one-step process.
This legislation will be replaced shortly by the proposed Large Scale Residential Development system, which will bring the local authorities back into the picture and once again make it a two-stage process.
Unfortunately in Ireland the development process is more like a four-step process.
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First, there is a planning application, or as it is called in other counties such as Australia a “development application”. Second, there is an appeal process, which is the reason why An Bord Pleanála was set up in 1977 to take the decisions away from politicians, where objections have been lodged to a development. The third part of the process is the recourse to the legal system which includes its various lower and higher courts.
The final part of the system is an appeal through the European Courts, which is an option that opened up to us on joining the EU in 1973.
If this country is to be seen as serious in tackling the housing crisis and the rise in homelessness there needs to be a debate about all these four parts of the development process, and not just the planning/development approval part of the process. The litigation process is open-ended, non time-limited and tends to favour those with the deepest pockets or substantial political support.
– Yours, etc,
MICHAEL KINSELLA,
IFSC,
Dublin 1.
