Planning reforms can still be in place by Easter, Government sources believe

Landmark planning reforms could still be enacted by Easter, Government sources believe, despite backlash from the Green Party over aspects and recriminations within the Coalition following its high-profile intervention.

On Wednesday, Coalition sources insisted the timetable to bring through the overhaul of planning regulations would not be significantly impacted despite the internal row over moves to limit the scope of who can judicially review a planning decision.

Pre-legislative scrutiny, senior sources believe, could take longer with the Greens likely to push for extensive input from environmental non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which have been critical of the Bill.

On Wednesday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin warned that the new planning legislation was needed if the country was to meet its climate targets.

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“The bottom line then is that we also have needs in terms of meeting the climate change challenges, particularly in the offshore wind area. And a very comprehensive climate plan is in preparation now,” Mr Martin told journalists in Brussels where he is attending a summit between EU and south Asian leaders.

“But that for the climate plan to be realised within the timelines that have been set, this planning Act has to be put in place.”

Elsewhere, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar defended the plans at Fine Gael’s parliamentary party meeting.

He said the country faced a housing and climate crisis and it could not afford to see new housing developments and wind farms being held up in planning processes for years.

Mr Varadkar said the proposed Bill was not about taking away people’s right to object or make observations; it was to make sure there were timely decisions.

While some sources were looking to defuse the issue – one Green source insisting “we’re all on the same page on this” – news of the interventions of Green members of Cabinet and comments from party backbenchers caused anger.

One senior source in Fianna Fáil argued that the Greens were specifically briefed by officials, the attorney general and others and that no objections had been raised at leaders’ meetings or elsewhere.

The source said the party “want it both ways”, and called on them to “stand up” to NGOs which had criticised the reforms on Tuesday, saying the party had “panicked” and accused it of “poor form”.

Speaking privately, others in the party were harshly critical of the Greens and questioned their motivations. “I think it’s about the Greens trying to make themselves relevant to their constituents and like they have some meaningful role in a Coalition Government where they have failed to perform for their own voters,” said one, describing the interventions as “just shaping”.

Another senior Government source, however, suggested the Cabinet memo may have been rushed, saying it should have gone to a Cabinet subcommittee, but that the attorney general and Mr O’Brien were eager to get the proposal through Cabinet.

Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin Bay South, Jim O’Callaghan – who is also a senior counsel – said however that he thought it would be “difficult” to restrict access to the courts by some groups unless the Government can “establish that such challenges are mostly unsuccessful and are consistently delaying housing projects”.

“What is more important is that any judicial review is concluded promptly, irrespective of whether it is brought in the name of an individual or an association,” he said.

Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne emphasised the need to “expedite planning decisions”, saying it was taking too long for decisions to be made. “While serious observations deserve consideration, there are many instances of cranks simply looking to obstruct development,” he said.

“Applications should be approved or refused but we cannot continue to have a situation where housing, critical infrastructure or key projects are left in limbo without a decision for years.”

The internal Government debate also played out on the airwaves where Green Party TD Neasa Hourigan raised her concerns about the plans, while Fine Gael Senator John Cummins insisted people would still have the right to make objections to developments.

Mr Cummins said on RTÉ Radio 1’s Drivetime that while residents’ associations may no longer collectively be able to make an objection under the proposals, individual members could still do so.

Ms Hourigan said her reading of the plans was that it was trying to bring in an “unnecessary barrier”.

She said it cost about €15,000 to begin the process of a judicial review and it was a lot easier for a residents’ association as a whole to gather those kinds of resources.

Ms Hourigan is also concerned that environmental NGOs could be restricted in the objections they could make while Mr Cummins insisted there was “no intention” for this to happen.

The Dublin Central TD agreed there was a need for big projects to be developed speedily.

However, she suggested that if residents’ groups could not make observations to a planning application or take judicial reviews, “I expect it to be immediately challenged in the courts. That’s probably a further delay that none of us need,” she said.