Senators slams guillotining of deeply flawed Planning and Development Bill

The Bill, the third-largest in the history of the State, was afforded just 21 hours of debate time in the Seanad to discuss the 664 amendments tabled to the Bill, with less than one-third of amendments being considered before the guillotine fell. At the conclusion of the debate, only those amendments tabled by the Government were accepted. While the Bill has been in development for a number of years, the main opportunity for members of the opposition to shape the legislation occurs in formal legislative stages. 

The Planning and Development Bill 2023 seeks to rewrite planning law in Ireland and will replace it with a new regime which is both undemocratic and unworkable. Opposition Senators tabled a significant volume of amendments, in good faith, in an attempt to address some of the Bill’s many deficiencies. Government demonstrated complete unwillingness to engage with members of the opposition in a collegial manner, refusing to accept a single amendment other than those proposed by the Minister. 

The skirting of usual good parliamentary practice with the imposition of a guillotine, means that serious flaws persist in the legislation. Significant issues have been raised in relation to the Bill’s compliance with the Aarhus Convention, an international agreement which promotes public participation in the planning process that Ireland has fully ratified. This particular issue leaves the legislation wide open to legal challenge in Irish and European courts. 

Speaking after the debate, Senator Higgins said: “The Planning Bill is deeply flawed and problematic. Asking the Seanad to pass legislation which has been found to be non-compliant with international law by the Aarhus Compliance Committee is wrong and the Government has been extremely disingenuous during this entire process. The Minister’s claims that the Bill is Aarhus compliant have been found to be untrue and the Government displayed an appalling unwillingness to meaningfully engage on or fix this issue. ”

“We need a planning system which works and which allows communities to actually have a say in local development. Instead what is proposed is a further centralisation of power and a move to push the public out of the planning process.”

Senator Frances Black said: “The proposed legislation will mean that city and county councillors will not get the same opportunity to input into local development plans and the new National Planning Statements made by the Minister can completely override the decisions local public representatives are elected to make.”

Senator Eileen Flynn said: “We had an opportunity to take real action on equality in this Bill. The Government’s refusal to include strong measures on Traveller accommodation and inclusive design is deeply disappointing. Travellers, disabled people and other excluded groups have for too long been ignored in the planning process and it seems the Government lacks the will to take real action to fix this.”

Senator Lynn Ruane concluded: “The Minister and the Government have shown absolute contempt for the Seanad in the undermining of proper parliamentary procedure. Notwithstanding the serious concerns we have about some of the more technical elements of the Bill, the legislation demonstrates a total lack of ambition and aspiration in terms of the communities we want to live in. The Bill as drafted won’t promote the development of more vibrant, cohesive, inclusive and sustainable communities, in fact it will undermine them through a minimalist and exclusionary approach to public participation.”