An officer of Cork Corporation was suspended for five days without pay and another was cautioned and asked to sign an undertaking on his future conduct, following a review of all planning applications made in the city over the past year.
Neither officer was directly involved with the corporation's planning department but they became involved, nevertheless, in a private capacity in the preparation of planning applications.
Their activities came to light as part of the local authority's review of 1,039 planning applications made to it last year.
All local councils in the State were ordered to conduct such a review in January by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, after planning irregularities came under scrutiny in Kerry County Council. Last week, Mr Donal Mangan, a senior Co Kerry engineer, was suspended for seven days for his role in the irregularities.
Management at Cork Corporation has written to Mr Jim Lillis, principal of the local government personnel section at the Department of the Environment and Local Government. The letter says that having examined all of the planning applications for last year, it was discovered that two officers, not working in the planning department, had been engaged in private activities involving the preparation of planning applications.
Seventeen applications, 16 of which were for house extensions and attic conversions, and one an outline application for a house, were involved. The letter says no attempt was made to influence the planning decisions in the 17 cases and that decisions were made according to due process. Appropriate disciplinary action was taken against the two officers, one of whom was suspended for five days without pay and given a final warning on future conduct. The second officer was cautioned and asked to sign a written undertaking on future conduct.
Following the review, it is understood that copies of the Local Government (Officers) Regulations 1994, the Rules of Conduct for Officers of Local Authorities and the Local Government (Planning & Development) Act 1976, as well as the Local Government (Planning & Development) Regulations 1994, have been sent to each of the 416 officers in Cork Corporation.
The letter concludes that management at the corporation is satisfied that it has not been compromised and that it has operated properly and legally.
Cork County Council has also reviewed all planning applications made to it over the past year and has found that while some staff had prepared applications for friends and family members, there were no serious irregularities. Some 8,576 planning applications were examined and given that no money was involved and no influence had been exerted on the planning process, the council has decided to take no action against its staff.