Vol. 483 No. 5
5 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands her views on whether the most recent postponement by Clare County Council of a planning decision in relation to her application for visitor facilities at Mullaghmore, County Clare signals the end of this project; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20809/97]
The current position in the development of the Burren National Park is that the Clare county manager decided to treat the planning application for the proposed visitor facilities at Mullaghmore as a "material contravention" of the county development plan. The application was brought before Clare County Council on 10 November 1997, and it passed a resolution that a decision on the material contravention would be deferred for a period of six months, subject to the consent of the applicant. I have consented to this deferral and the matter will fall to be considered again by the council on 20 May 1998.
In accordance with the Government's Action Programme for the Millennium I am involved in a process of consultation with all interested parties with a view to studying the situation thoroughly. I and my officials recently met a number of groups and listened to their views. This process, which is ongoing, will inform an overall management strategy for the Burren area and the development of the national park.
I am unhappy with what has developed. At the recent meeting Clare County Council — which has a substantial majority from the Minister's party — prevaricated unnecessarily and put the project in question. It is not only Mullaghmore which is suffering, Kilfenora and other areas of north Clare have been badly let down. All these examinations were completed by the previous Minister and people before him. Why did the current Minister agree to the delay? This puts the problems of Corofin, Kilfenora and the other areas on a long finger never to be resolved, which will be a disaster for North Clare.
The Deputy is only too well aware I am not a member of Clare County Council, which took the decision for its own reasons. The proposal was put forward by the last Minister, Deputy Higgins, and it is under the planning process. It is for the county council to decide how to run with that process and I am sure Deputy Carey will encourage Fine Gael members of the council to support that plan, given that the proposal was agreed by the last Government and no doubt he feels he can continue to support it.
I do not accept, under any circumstances, that the centres in Corofin and Kilfenora will be left dangling in this regard. As I said in my initial reply, I have spoken more than once to all the interested groups, including the representatives of Corofin and Kilfenora. The groups which I met several times in those areas outlined a number of proposals which they wish to see developed. We hope to further those proposals. As I said, it is a matter for the planning process and it would be most injudicious and wrong to try to interfere in any way in that process which must take its due course.
The Minister should have accepted the decision.
I agree that it would be very wrong to interfere in the planning process. However, the Minister's Department is the applicant in that planning process. Is she aware that the present application to Clare County Council was made after a working group was established which, after a consultative process, made a proposal to the county council? It has had a number of difficulties in relation to requests for further information.
It is not the case that the deferral to which the Minister referred will require a return to the court? The Minister is the applicant to Clare County Council but is also the person before the court. Given that an undertaking was given to the court of what would be put to the county council, a return to the court is inevitable.
As the person making the application to Clare County Council, would it not be judicious for the Minister, without interfering in the planning process, to consider withdrawing the application? When I was the Minister I withdrew the first application and replaced it with the present proposal, which came from the working group and a consultative process. Would it not be judicious to consider withdrawing the present proposal and decoupling the development of Kilfenora, Corofin and Ballyvaughan from the contentious matter? I understood there was consensus that those three villages should be developed. Would that not be better than having a long, indefinite and protracted process?
I thank the Deputy for his questions. We know about the consultative process and the Brady, Shipman & Martin reports. However, this question came before Clare County Council and the councillors took a democratic decision to look for further time. The planning process should be allowed take place in the normal way. It would be very wrong for me or any other Minister to interfere in that process.
I have no intention of withdrawing the present proposal. As the Deputy said, I, as Minister, am the applicant. That is part of the planning process at present. I do not accept the views expressed by Deputy Higgins and Carey that the situation in Corofin and Kilfenora should not be addressed. I hope we can move all these situations forward. I have been speaking to both those who are very much in favour of the development in Mullaghmore and those who do not share that view. As I said earlier, I have also been speaking to the people in Corofin and Kilfenora who would like to see matters progressing there. I hope all these matters can progress together. I have spoken about the plans for possible land acquisition to the people concerned in Corofin and Kilfenora and that is currently being addressed by my Department.
The position in relation to the court is that the applicant, the Minister of the day, was required by the other litigants to give an indication of what the Minister would put before Clare County Council. While Clare County Council is perfectly entitled to defer the matter for six months, what is the Minister's position in relation to the court?
I am not a lawyer but I have not been advised that any legal action needs to be taken at this point. My advice is that Clare County Council, on foot of its decision at its last meeting, will decide on this matter on 20 May 1998. I await its judgment on this matter.
The Minister's indecisiveness in this project will bring about greater divisions than existed heretofore in north Clare. The Department issued a statement on behalf of the Minister saying there was no contravention of the county plan. The county manager said there was a contravention of the plan which meant he needed to change the development plan. He required the support of two thirds of the councillors to do that.
Does the Deputy have a question?
My understanding is that two Fianna Fáil councillors refused to take a decision and, consequently, the council postponed the decision. That is not good for development. What action will the Minister take to reverse that? If she has no further information to give Clare County Council nothing can change, unless she is submitting a new application which she has already told Deputy Higgins she has no intention of doing. What will change?
The Deputy is being some-what vexatious in regard to this straightforward matter. Clare County Council took a decision in which I obviously had no part. I hope we can take from the Deputy's remarks that he can guarantee there will be a full complement of Fine Gael councillors in attendance on 20 May who will vote for this contravention and support the proposal.
I have already said quite clearly that I have spoken to the groups from Corofin and Kilfenora. They put forward very definite plans on which I am working, with very definite views in mind which I have expressed to the representatives of both organisations. They are well aware, not only of my intentions but of my actions in this regard.
