Vol. 542 No. 6
246 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans he has to ensure that the strategic planning guidelines are implemented in counties Meath, Kildare and Dublin in a similar manner to the way in which the proposals for Newtownmountkennedy and Kilcoole, County Wicklow were dealt with; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25454/01]
The strategic planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area, published in March 1999, set out an integrated land-use and transportation framework for the sustainable development of the area. They were commissioned by the constituent local authorities in the Dublin and mid-east regional authorities. My Department also participated in the preparatory process.
In advance of new legislation to give statutory force to the guidelines, my Department requested each local authority in the greater Dublin area, in April 1999, to ensure that its development plan was aligned with the strategy set out in the strategic planning guidelines. The Planning and Development Act, 2000, the relevant provisions of which commenced on 1 January 2001, now require planning authorities to have regard to the guidelines when making and adopting a development plan.
In accordance with its role as statutory consultee for development plans, my Department examined draft development plans which had been prepared during the year 2000 by Kildare, Meath and Wicklow county councils and wrote to each of those councils, between December 2000 and January 2001, raising a number of issues of concern in relation to compliance with the strategic planning guidelines. The development plans for Meath and Wicklow have since been adopted.
