Vol. 370 No. 15
asked the Minister for the Environment if he will amend, in the national interests, that part of the Planning and Development Act, 1963 which allows developers or any other persons to apply for planning permission in areas of high amenity and therby make large profits as in the recent case of Roches Hill, Killiney, County Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
62.
asked the Minister for the Environment the action, if any, he intends taking in connection with the recent decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Roches Hill, Killiney, County Dublin facilitating the granting of a sum of £2.37 million to a developer on an original investment of £40,000; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 61 and 62 together.
The general question of compensation is being examined in my Department in the context of the Constitution and the balance between private rights and the common good and in the light of the conclusions and recommendations contained in the Report of the Joint Committee on Building Land. The full text of the Supreme Court judgment in the Roches Hill case has become available only today. It will require careful consideration and will have a bearing on my Department's review.
It is important to bear in mind, however, that the compensation figure being quoted is the amount of compensation claimed as opposed to what may or may not be ultimately determined by a property arbitrator.
