The Roads Bill, 1991 which is currently awaiting Committee Stage in the House contains provisions which will prohibit temporary dwellings from the major roads and will make it an offence for a person to erect or retain on a public road any caravan, vehicle or other thing for the purposes of advertising, the sale of goods or the provision of services, without the consent of the local authority.
The Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, 1992, which is at Second Stage in the House, empowers housing authorities to remove a caravan or other temporary dwelling which is parked in a public place within two miles of an official halting site in which there is suitable space for it.
Under section 31 of the Local Government (Sanitary Services) Act, 1948, local authorities may make prohibition orders, the effect of which is to prohibit the parking of caravans and temporary dwellings in a specified area. I will be keeping the operation of this legislation under review in the light of experience with the new housing and roads provisions.