Section 96(15) of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 provides that permissions for residential development within the scope of Part V will last until 31 December 2002 or for two years, whichever is longer, if the application for permission was made after 25 August 1999 but before the housing strategy was included in the relevant development plan. The Act does not permit the waiver of this provision in respect of particular developments and any arrangement of this kind would require amending primary legislation. I do not intend to sponsor any such amendment to Part V of the Act, which reflects the full and recent consensus of the Legislature on an important policy matter.
I encourage any developer who believes that he or she will not be in a position to build out their development within the two years available to make an early reapplication for permission. This will ensure development on-site does not have to be halted while the planning application is being processed. In addition, local authorities are being advised to process all such reapplications as quickly as possible to avoid any interruption to the supply of housing while these applications for permission are processed. As consideration will already have been given to the planning implications of a housing development on that site when the first application was made, this should facilitate the speedy consideration of the repeat application. In addition, I have reduced the fee for making a repeat application to one quarter of the normal fee.
I will keep the matter of the processing of reapplications under review and if it appears necessary to do so, will consider use of other relevant powers under the Planning and Development Act to ensure these applications are processed quickly.