The Planning and Development Regulations 2001 introduced a number of changes to provisions governing public notice of planning applications and decisions. In addition, the regulations provide that where a planning authority receives further information and it considers that the information contains significant additional data, the applicant is required to place a notice in an approved newspaper stating that significant further information has been received in relation to the application and that submissions or observations in relation to the further information can be made in writing to the planning authority on payment of the prescribed fee. The planning authority also must give notice to any relevant prescribed bodies and to any other persons or bodies who have already made submissions or observations on the application that such further information has been received.
As regards decisions on planning applications, the regulations require that the planning authority must also give notice to relevant prescribed bodies and to any other person or body who made a submission or observation on the application. In addition, each planning authority is required to publish a weekly list of planning decisions and to make copies of this list available at the offices of the planning authority. I consider these recent provisions about public notice to be appropriate and I have no proposals, at this stage, to amend or add to them.
