I move amendment 49:—
Section 16, line 39. Before the word " Act " to insert the words " and Rural Amenities."
This is a small amendment. It was thought desirable to make it clear that the Act does not deal only with towns but that it concerns rural amenities.
I move amendment 50:—
First Schedule. To delete the Schedule and to substitute therefor a new Schedule as follows:—
Matters to be dealt with by general provisions prescribed by the Minister for Local Government and Public Health.
1. Streets, roads and other ways, and stopping up or diversion of existing highways.
2. Buildings, structures and erections and the user thereof.
3. Factory, workshop, trading, housing, institutional and administrative zones.
4. Open spaces, private and public, and aerodromes.
5. The preservation and control of sites, buildings and other objects of historical or artistic interest or natural beauty.
6. The control of advertisements, hoardings and signs.
7. Sewerage, drainage and sewage disposal, the prevention of litter, disposal of refuse and reclamation of land.
8. Lighting.
9. Water supply.
10. Petrol pumps and other erections for the supply of petrol.
11. Ancillary or consequential works.
12. Extinction or variation of private rights of way and other easements.
13. The control of canal and river banks and bridges and roads adjoining.
14. Dealing with or disposal of land acquired by the responsible authority or by a local authority.
15. Power of entry and inspection.
16. Power of the responsible authority to remove, alter or demolish any obstructive work, or derelict buildings.
17. Power of the responsible authority to make agreements with owners, and of owners to make agreements with one another.
18. Power to add to the matters in respect of which a local authority may make by-laws.
19. Power of the responsible authority or a local authority to accept any money or property for the furtherance of the objects of any town planning scheme, and provision for regulating the administration of any such money or property.
20. Application with the necessary modifications and adaptations of statutory enactments.
21. Carrying out and supplementing the provisions of this Act for enforcing schemes.
22. Limitation of time for operation of scheme.
23. Providing for periodic revision of the Civic Survey and the making of necessary modifications in a town planning scheme.
24. Co-operation of the responsible authority with the owners of land included in the scheme or other persons interested.
25. Charging on the inheritance of any land the value of which is increased by the operation of a town planning scheme the sum required to be paid in respect of that increase, and for that purpose applying, with the necessary adaptations, the provisions of any enactments dealing with charges for improvements of land.
There is only now the question of private rights of way.
I am not aware that there will be any trouble over private rights of way. There are similar provisions in the English Act, and I have a letter here with regard to their results. It might be incidental in the adjustment of the boundaries of estates. Apparently there has not been any serious consequence of it.
This is a different country from England. Blood has been spilled over these things in this country.
Are you likely to have any general plan or scheme to interfere with private rights?
You never can tell. I have seen some cases in which this Bill might be used to extinguish private rights of way that ought not to be extinguished.
They are more particular in England about rights of way than here, very much more particular.
Yes. There is a big association for the protection of public rights of way there.
Private rights are another matter.
There is a question of footpaths and all sorts of things. The whole Schedule applies to the general regulations which the Minister may make for the preparation and the carrying out of a town planning scheme and the many things about which he may make provision.
Item 12 in the amendment is very undesirable. " The extinction or variation of private rights of way and other easements." That is a most undesirable section to put in.
But there is compensation.
Compensation would not meet it. I know of a good many cases in which blood has been spilt already and would be spilt again over these things. I would like to eliminate that item 12 altogether.
It does not do away with anything.
It gives him power to extinguish and you can never know how that may be used in the country.
It only gives them power to make reservations.
The general provision includes extinctions. That was the point I was raising and you said it was dealt with in the Schedule.
You must not extinguish a private right of way unless you have so and so. The Bill deals with that.
What is the objection to leaving it out altogether?
I do not know of any objection.
I know of cases in which it might be used against the interests of private individuals and might cause any amount of trouble and I think Senator Linehan knows many cases of that sort too.
That would apply to the country districts only. I do not think it would affect town planning in a city.
But this Bill would affect any area.
What I mean is that the working of it would not apply to country districts.
I would like to move that we omit item 12.
I do not think it would do any substantial harm myself.
You would include the rural districts.
You cannot do that.
There is nothing to prevent a town planning scheme interfering with the right of way; it is only the regulations of the Minister. I do not think it is worth it. I may take it that we are agreed that item 12 be deleted.
I move amendment 51:
To delete the words " on each acre."
I move:
In the Second Schedule, paragraph 5, after the word " character " to insert the words " and design."
What about the last page—" charging on the inheritance of any land the value of which is increased," and so on?
That is the one we have passed.
Now supposing somebody dies and somebody else comes in and the Revenue Commissioners come down and charge duty on that.
On the market value. It depends on what passes at death. The whole inheritance may not pass on the death. If it is a case of a life tenant with a remainder man it does not pass. It will be only the market value.
It will be increased on those.
It will be only the market value. I do not see how you can prevent that.
Second Schedule, as amended, put and agreed to.
There is the amendment to delete the preamble.
Yes, on the ground that it does not add to the value of the Bill. It does not give any powers.
Was there ever a Bill without a preamble?
There are no preambles now. That is the modern method. It used to affect the Act and had no right to do it.
What about the title now? We have already altered the short title.
The long title includes public amenities.
