Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 February 2024
181. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will make changes to the guidelines that deny planning permission to applicants in Donegal who would have to access on to the N56. [8558/24]
View answerIt is a principle under planning that the planning process is not pre-determined and where any planning application is lodged in accordance with section 34 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act), the application must be considered on a case by case basis by the relevant planning authority.
An application for planning permission also provides an opportunity for members of the public to make submissions or observations in respect of proposed development. The planning authority is required to have regard to any submissions or observations received on a planning application during the public participation process in accordance with section 34 of the Act.
Where any party is unhappy with the decision of a planning authority in relation to an application for planning permission, the decision may be appealed to An Bord Pleanála within four weeks of the decision of the planning authority in accordance with section 37 of the Act.
It should be noted that the establishment of individual objectives and policies within County Development Plans which form part of the consideration of any application, is an exercise undertaken by Planning Authorities as part of their overall statutory development plan function under sections 9 to 13 of the Act and is a reserved function of the elected members.
The Spatial Planning and National Roads Guidelines were issued in 2012 by the then Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government under Section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended. The Guidelines were prepared in consultation with the Department of Transport, local authorities and the National Roads Authority (NRA - now Transport Infrastructure Ireland - TII).
Planning authorities are required to have regard to the Guidelines in the performance of their functions under the Planning and Development Act 2000. Planning authorities must also ensure that they consult with TII in preparing any local area plans or other non-statutory plans where there may be material implications for national roads.
The Guidelines set out planning policy considerations relating to development affecting national roads (including motorways, national primary and national secondary roads) outside the 50-60 kmh speed limit zones for cities, towns and villages. The Guidelines state that local authority Development Plans must include policies that seek to maintain and protect the safety, capacity and efficiency of national roads and associated junctions, avoiding the creation of new accesses and the intensification of existing accesses to national roads where a speed limit greater than 50 km per hour applies.
The Guidelines do state that, in certain circumstances, planning authorities may identify stretches of national secondary roads where a less restrictive approach may be applied as part of the process of reviewing or varying the relevant development plan. This includes the form and suitability of development, the volume of traffic to be generated and the implications for safety, capacity and efficient operation of national roads including any future upgrades and consistency with other planning guidelines issued under section 28 of the Act such as the Retail Planning Guidelines 2012 and Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines 2005.
