A review of how planning laws and policy have been implemented in six local authority areas has been ordered by Minister for the Environment John Gormley.
Independent planning investigators are to examine if decisions taken by Dublin City Council, Carlow County Council, Galway County Council, Cork City Council, Cork County Council and Meath County Council were made in a consistent and transparent manner and in adherence with development plans.
It is understood the inquiry will examine issues such as zoning, the scale and height of certain structures and concerns raised in local government audit reports.
Mr Gormley said some 8,000 complaints, representations and submissions on various planning issues had been received by his department from An Taisce, NGOs and members of the public last year. He said this correspondence would be used to shape the work of the review group and to help prepare future development plans.
He said there had been specific and major complaints about decisions made by the authorities that were to be examined but that they also offered a good geographic spread.
Mr Gormley said the purpose of the review was not to examine particular planning decisions but to assess the processes and systems that enable such decisions to be made. He said he was precluded from getting involved in individual planning cases.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio, Mr Gormley said if impropriety was uncovered in the course of the investigation it would be treated as a very serious matter. However, he said terms such as corruption and breaches of the law were loaded terms and should at this stage be used very carefully in the context of the review.
“I think we have to be very careful not to in any way prejudice the outcomes of these inquiries. We have to ensure everybody has an opportunity to respond…We have to look at why exactly they made these decisions and there could be legitimate reasons for that.”
Mr Gormley said that “in the main” the planning system was working well but he was undertaking the inquiry to ensure that “we have a more rigorous and robust planning system as a result” and to make any sense of impropriety a thing of the past.
Planning experts from here and abroad are to examine the decisions made by the local authorities in question and look at processes in detail. They will also assess whether the local authorities have the correct powers and tools in place to deliver on their responsibilities.
The identity of those who will sit on the panel is not yet known, a spokesman for the department said.
Mr Gormley is to write to the local authorities concerned asking them for their views on the matter. He is to use powers available under Section 255 of the Planning Act, which allows him to seek information from local authorities as to the operation of their own systems and procedures, to assist in the review.
The local authorities will be asked to examine the issues raised with the Department of the Environment and to provide a detailed response within four weeks. Their responses will be assessed by the panel of experts.
Cork City Manager Joe Gavin said he did not know why his council was being investigated and that he was disappointed he learned of the inquiry on the radio this morning.
Mr Gavin said all departments in Cork City Council operated appropriately and that he was satisfied best practice had been followed in its planning policies.
A Galway County Council spokeswoman said it has not yet received details of the concerns over its planning procedures. “We will of course be co-operating fully with any review,” she said.
A Dublin City Council spokesman said it would fully cooperate with the review.
While Mr Gormley said the authorities were informed last week of the impending investigation, Martin Riordan, Cork County Manager, said he was “surprised and disappointed” to learn about it this morning.
Mr Riordan said he was confident the review will show his council’s planning system is one of the most transparent processes in the public service.
Additional reporting: PA
