[Article] Planning appeals against key projects to be eliminated

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/topstories/1658765?view=Eircomnet

Planning appeals against key projects to be eliminated
From:ireland.com
Monday, 13th October, 2003

Planning appeals against major State and private construction projects are to be eliminated, under new measures to speed up the planning process to be brought before the Cabinet shortly.

Under the proposed new law, decisions on key projects will be taken out of the hands of local authorities and An Bord Pleanála and dealt with by a new authority, the National Infrastructure Body.

The measures, from the Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, come in the wake of mounting concerns among Ministers about the State's escalating infrastructure bill and complaints from major foreign companies about delays in the planning process.

The heads of a Bill will be brought to the Cabinet before Christmas, though subsequent legislation will specify the type of projects to be covered.

"It will only be for key ones that affect the national interest," one source said.

In his address to the Fianna Fáil ardfheis in Killarney on Saturday night, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, made reference to the new body but did not give details.

Heading off criticism that controversial projects will be railroaded through, Mr Ahern said: "All the issues will be heard, but delays will shorter and decisions will be faster.

"Building a better Ireland must be done more cost-effectively and more quickly. Consultation is important but it cannot be endless. Building for the greater good - this is our national interest," he said.

Mr Ahern was convinced that changes had to be made following the lengthy battle over plans to build a terminal in Mayo to receive gas from the Corrib gasfields.

Strongly opposed by some local people, the project was considered by Mayo County Council for 18 months, and it was a further 12 months with An Bord Pleanála before final decisions were reached.

Although appeals to its rulings will not be allowed, the National Infrastructure Board's decisions will have to comply with all EU directives and national law. Officials in the Department of the Environment and Local Government have been working on the proposal for months, although consultations with other Departments have not yet concluded.

It is not clear what type of projects will be decided by the new body and it is not clear if highly controversial projects, such as incinerators, will be included.

Many infrastructure projects, such as major roads, bypass local authorities and are ruled on directly by An Bord Pleanála, while projects such as Luas, backed by specific legislation, are dealt with by special inquiries.

Mr Cullen told the ardfheis: "The economic interests of Ireland cannot be held to ransom by short-term interests. Public consultation is fundamental to good planning. But when projects are approved following robust consideration, we have to ensure that they are built.

ixoy

Is this a good or a bad thing? It's good for the majority but it will piss off those residents who live near affected areas. I think we really REALLY need to be able to railroad these things through so I'm all for placing everything on the fast-track (or, in Ireland, on the "medium" track). I have to suffer LUAS works beside me and the sooner you can get legislation in to help these projects get done on bloody time (I won't even bother hoping for within budget!), the better.

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/topstories/1703283?view=Eircomnet

Mixed reaction to planning body
From:ireland.com
Monday, 20th October, 2003

An Bord Pleanála has questioned the need for the Government's proposal to create a special body to fast-track planning applications for major public and private projects.

During a rare public appearance, the chairman of the planning board, Mr John O'Connor, said: "We are now doing 80 per cent of appeals within the statutory timeframe of 18 weeks and we are continuing to improve on that. We have a strategic target of 90 per cent within the 18-week period and we would hope to be achieving that pretty soon," he told RTÉ's Week In Politics.

Local authority and National Roads Authority (NRA) projects are also being dealt with faster, said Mr O'Connor, in remarks that will be taken as implicit criticism of the Government's plans.

"In relation to infrastructure, these were previously dealt with in other ways and there has again been a marked improvement, as borne out by a study carried out by the NRA."

The heads of legislation from the Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, to create the National Infrastructure Board should be with the Cabinet before Christmas.

Under Mr Cullen's proposals, the new board would be given charge of major projects "which are in the national interest" - although this could include both State and private developments.

Supporting the thrust of the proposals, NRA chairman Mr Peter Malone said there is a need to "urgently reform" infrastructural planning.

Speaking at a transportation policy conference organised by the Association of Irish Regions, Mr Malone said the regulations affecting the NRA and other semi-state agencies are "inhibiting the efficient and cost-effective delivery of infrastructure".

"Serious consideration must be given to a one-stop shop development-approval mechanism. An indispensable element of reformed procedures is that finality be brought to the development consent process and that a consent, once duly obtained, can guarantee that a project can proceed quickly to completion," he declared.

Rejecting charges that major construction projects always go over budget, Mr Malone said: "It is unrealistic to expect that major projects can always be brought in on time and within budget under the current regulatory environment."

The South Eastern Motorway extension to the M50 secured legal approval in October 1998, but legal actions still under way mean that completion is uncertain.

Legal challenges could equally affect the M3 Clonee-Kells motorway, even though that was approved by An Bord Pleanála after a 28-day oral hearing - one of the longest in the history of the State.

The NRA and Meath County Council are "determined to see off" challenges from people who did not take part in the planning appeal hearing, he told the conference.

Calling for a special High Court division to deal with planning issues, he said projects such as the M3 would "bring social and economic benefits throughout the country".

Although the NRA has completed 187 km of roads in the past two years and begun work on a further 155 km, Mr Malone said the level of activity must increase further if Ireland is to catch up on other EU countries.

He added that the Government must give the NRA multi-annual budgets. "The authority must await Budget day to learn what the Exchequer allocation to the roads programme for the following year will be. The uncertainty about funding levels and the stop-go environment this creates militates against the effective management and roll-out of the national roads programme."