Sir, – I read with interest the article “Reform of planning system to accelerate home building rejected as ‘unworkable’ by planners” (News, March 27th) with great interest.
It seems the more we see political interference in the planning system, the more cumbersome it becomes, and difficulty in delivering much-needed housing grows.
Politicians seem to believe the solution is to introduce more planning policy. It’s almost as if they must interfere. It may get them column inches but delivers not one house. With the result that such policies as the regional spatial economic strategies are making it impossible to deliver housing by local authorities or An Bord Pleanála, as they are compelled to adhere to these policies. A better approach would be to relax policies on height and density in regional, development and local area plans.
We must have accurate population figures to support sustainable development to ensure thousands of homes are permitted, not refused, as seems to be the current outcome. This approach would contribute to easing the current housing emergency in a significant way. – Yours, etc,
Matt Williams: Take a deep breath and see how Sam Prendergast copes with big Fiji test
New Irish citizens: ‘I hear the racist and xenophobic slurs on the streets. Everything is blamed on immigrants’
Jack Reynor: ‘We were in two minds between eloping or going the whole hog but we got married in Wicklow with about 220 people’
‘I could have gone to California. At this rate, I probably would have raised about half a billion dollars’
JOE CORR,
Rush,
Co Dublin.