Emmet Stagg
Question:263 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the fines relating to persons who do not build in accordance with planning permission, and subsequently apply for retention. [31571/01]
Written Answers. - Planning Permission Irregularities.
Under the existing regulations, the fee which must accompany an application for permission for retention of a structure is one and a half times the fee for a regular planning application.
The Planning and Development Act, 2000, contains significant new provisions to improve the enforcement of the planning code and to prevent any abuse of the retention permission system. In the new planning and development regulations which I laid in draft before the Houses of the Oireachtas last week, I am proposing to set the application fee for retentions at the significantly higher level of three times the fee for an ordinary planning application.
Section 156 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, which I propose to commence in the new year, will increase the maximum fines which may be imposed for breaches of the planning code. A person who is guilty of an offence of carrying out unauthorised development will in future be liable on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £10,000,000, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both, or on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,500, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both. A person summarily convicted may be fined up to £1,500 or be imprisoned for up to six months. The imposition of fines, and the amount of such fine in individual cases, is of course a matter for the courts.
The strengthened and simplified enforcement provisions of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, are designed to deter breaches of the planning code, and to lead to a stronger culture of enforcement in planning matters.