Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 10 May 2023

Vol. 1038 No. 1

Planning and Rural Housing: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]

The following motion was moved by Deputy Richard O'Donoghue on Wednesday, 10 May 2023:

That Dáil Éireann:

acknowledges that:

- despite years of promises and lip service, the Government has consistently failed to effectively tackle the housing crisis, leaving them scrambling to react to a situation that has now spun out of control;

- according to Eurostat, Ireland's housing crisis is currently the worst in Europe, with rent prices increasing more than any other European Union country;

- the Construction Industry Federation reports that 70,000 homes are currently held up in the planning system due to appeals to An Bord Pleanála or the courts;

- the lack of coherent Government action, along with strict planning processes and rising construction material costs, is significantly straining the affordability and delivery of new housing projects;

- the planning system in Ireland is dysfunctional, outdated, and not fit for purpose, and is now one of the biggest obstacles to house building and is a major cost driver of expensive housing;

- the Government's failure and inaction to address the overly bureaucratic planning system have rendered the entire planning system unworkable, and it is within their jurisdiction to rectify it;

- the Government bears significant responsibility for the dysfunctional planning system, which is underpinned by anti-rural regulations, including a cap on the number of one-off houses per county, as per the National Planning Framework (NPF);

- in the absence of updated regional planning guidelines, the NPF is dictating the guidelines that feed into regional strategies - which local councils must consider when setting development plans - and negatively impacting on planning permission for one-off housing;

- rural housing regulations that restrict the granting of planning permission on rural lands adjacent to national roads, even with an existing entrance, are overly zealous and exacerbating the housing crisis; and

- the Office of the Planning Regulator has been allowed by Government to take an especially aggressive and unhelpful anti-rural stance on one-off housing, consistent with the Government's objective to have a more compact and sustainable pattern of overall development, further depopulating rural communities;

notes that:

- Irish planning laws are outdated and almost impossible to navigate when it comes to obtaining planning permission for log cabins, with individuals who have invested their own money or taken out loans to build a home for themselves facing insurmountable obstacles;

- log cabins offer a range of benefits for housing, including durability, energy efficiency, and a rustic aesthetic;

- log cabins can be constructed quickly and efficiently, making them a cost-effective option for both builders and homeowners;

- to fully take advantage of the benefits offered by log cabins, planning restrictions must be eased to make log cabin construction more accessible and affordable for those interested in this type of housing;

- the last rural housing guidelines were issued in 2005 (18 years ago), and while this Government and the last Government promised to publish new guidelines we still do not have a policy in place;

- the lack of a rural housing policy document means that local authorities have no universal roadmap for rural housing policy within their operational planning remits;

- while the Government has proceeded to publish draft sustainable and compact settlement planning guidelines aimed at forcing more urban living, it has failed, despite promises, to publish a similar policy for rural communities;

- the Government is inactive in terms of rural housing policy, which has resulted in young people being forced off the land of their forebears due to unreasonable policy decisions, restrictions in granting planning permission for rural homes, and preventing farmers' sons and daughters from living on the land and in their communities of origin;

- the current planning process, from local development plans to specific project assessment, An Bord Pleanála appeals, and judicial reviews, can take up to four years for a project or applicant to be determined;

- the Government's overwhelming reliance on the private sector to deliver housing is not supported by a functioning planning system, despite the problem being consistently highlighted for well over a decade;

- An Bord Pleanála has become a dysfunctional organisation that is neither efficient nor effective, and the time has come for it to be overhauled, scrapped, or replaced; and

- An Bord Pleanála, which ultimately determines appeals and applications for strategic infrastructure and housing developments, currently has only 70 inspectors and eight board members to regulate the entire planning system here, compared to the Central Bank of Ireland, which has 1,100 staff to regulate the financial system; and

calls on the Government to:

- instruct the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to publish the long-promised new rural housing guidelines to bring clarity and certainty to rural communities, young families, and couples exploring the option of restoring old farm homesteads or building a rural one-off home;

- ensure that the new rural planning guidelines allow for planning permission to be permitted for rural housing in all rural areas for those who have a genuine housing need or connection to the local area, in order to allow young people to continue to work on the land, develop rural Ireland, and keep our townlands, towns, and villages strong and vibrant;

- relax outdated planning laws to allow sustainable log cabin units to be constructed without unnecessary planning permission requirements by amending the planning regulations that would facilitate the construction of temporary or permanent structures for residential purposes on family-owned lands in rural areas;

- extend the Help to Buy scheme to incorporate first-time buyers who wish to buy a second-hand house or apartment;

- introduce a new €20,000 grant-aid package for anyone who wishes to build a permanent one-off house on their own lands;

- amend the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund Scheme, to include properties that are vacant for more than 30 days, to boost the availability of higher quality rental accommodation;

- introduce statutory timelines of no greater than eight weeks for An Bord Pleanála to deal with all applications to dramatically reduce backlogs; and

- instruct the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to relax regulations to rural housing so that planning permission may be granted for permanent homes on rural lands adjacent to national roads.

Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:

"acknowledges that:

— regarding progress being made on housing delivery and the commitment to rural areas:

— the Government is comprehensively addressing the housing crisis through a suite of actions to accelerate the delivery of new homes whilst also continuing to deliver on the fundamental reforms set out in the Plan;

— central to the Plan are measures to accelerate the delivery of new homes whilst also continuing to deliver on the fundamental reforms set out in the Plan;

— Housing for All: A New Housing Plan commits Government to the largest State-led building programme ever and a sustainable supply of social and affordable homes to buy or rent, including cost rental homes, a new form of long-term sustainable home rental;

— the Plan also details ways to maximise the efficient use of housing stock and bring back vacant dwellings into long-term residential use;

— the Government supports the development of rural areas and the need to ensure that they continue to be viable places to live, work and invest in;

— rural communities are being supported and invested in by Government, including under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) for 215 projects worth a total of €542 million and also the Town and Village Renewal Scheme (TVRS) which, since its introduction in 2016, has allocated over €149 million to more than 1,600 projects across Ireland; and

— Our Rural Future 2021-2025 features a number of key funding streams for rural development, including CLÁR (€7.85 million), the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (€16 million) and the Local Improvement Scheme [roads] (€12 million);

— regarding planning legislative reform and timelines for An Bord Pleanála:

— the Government is progressing legislative reform of the planning system, with the Draft Planning and Development Bill representing the most comprehensive review of planning since the Act was first drafted;

— the structures of the planning legislation have been reviewed to ensure alignment and consistency, both with our European and environmental obligations and in relation to the various tiers of national, regional and local plan making;

— users of the planning system will benefit from greater certainty through the introduction of a range of statutory and mandatory timelines across the various consenting processes involved;

— An Bord Pleanála, which will be called An Coimisiún Pleanála, will undergo an organisational restructure and will be subject to statutory timelines, introduced over a phased basis; and

— the draft Bill improves planning processes by ensuring provisions align with policy and are more accessible and streamlined from a legal perspective, putting plan-making at the centre of the planning system, whilst also introducing statutory timelines for planning decisions;

— regarding the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund:

— the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund is successfully supporting the refurbishment of vacant and derelict properties through the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant and the provision of serviced sites for people to build their own homes through the Ready to Build Scheme; and

— on 1st May, the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant was expanded to build on the success of the scheme to date and further increase the number of vacant and derelict properties brought back into use; and details of the expansion are as follows:

(i) the inclusion of one property which will be made available for rent, by the owner, in addition to one grant for a property which will be a principal private residence of the applicant i.e. a maximum of two applications for a grant will be available;

(ii) changing the eligibility date, which is currently 1993 for the build date, to include vacant and derelict properties built up to and including 2007; and

(iii) increase of the current maximum grant rates from €30,000 to €50,000 for vacant properties and from €50,000 to €70,000 for derelict properties;

— regarding the Help to Buy (HTB) scheme:

— an increase in the supply of new housing remains a priority aim of Government policy and, for this reason, the HTB scheme is specifically designed to encourage an increase in demand for purchased or self-built new homes in order to support the construction of such properties;

— to this end, the definition of a qualifying residence for the purposes of HTB is very specific; that is, the residence must be a new building which was not, at any time, used or suitable for use as a dwelling;

— however, in circumstances where a residential property has been knocked down and rebuilt or where a non-residential property is converted for residential use, then it may be considered new; and

— a move to include second-hand residential properties within the scope of the scheme itself would not improve the effectiveness of the relief, rather, it could serve to dilute the incentive effect of the measure that encourages additional construction; and expanding HTB in this way would provide no incentive effect to encourage the building of new homes and would be likely to have a significant deadweight element and a high Exchequer cost;

— regarding grant-aid packages for one-off home builders:

— in order to activate planning permissions for new homes the Government has provided for a Temporary Time-Limited Waiver in respect of development contributions to local authorities as well as Uisce Éireann water and waste water connection charges;

— this applies to all permitted residential developments that commence on site within one year of 25th April, 2023 (i.e. not later than 24th April, 2024) and is completed not later than 31st December, 2025; and

— it is estimated that the combined average benefit of introducing the development contribution waiver and Uisce Éireann connection charge refund arrangements would be of the order of circa €12,651 per housing unit based on a national average;

— with regard to the planning system and rural housing:

— the National Planning Framework (NPF) and Our Rural Future (ORF) are strategic national policies that aim to support the overall rural pattern of development in Ireland and deliver strengthened and diversified rural communities by encouraging growth;

— the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR) is the statutory body charged with ensuring that the policies of Development Plans and Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies (RSESs) are consistent with national planning policy, guidelines and legislation;

— the OPR must balance the need to provide new homes sustainably within settlements while in tandem accommodating housing in the surrounding rural area;

— the three Regional Assemblies have adopted their Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies (RSES) since and 29 of the 31 city and county development plans have been reviewed to date since the publication of the NPF and their policies on rural housing are consistent with national policy requirements;

— the existing Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines were issued in 2005 as Ministerial Guidance under Section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000; updated Rural Housing Planning Guidelines are currently being prepared and will be subject to legal review, then issued for a period of public consultation before finalisation;

— in terms of providing approvals for new development, the planning system in Ireland continues to deliver substantial planning permissions for new homes every year in Ireland - including 42,991 permitted homes in 2021 and 34,177 in 2022; this includes permission for 7,499 once-off homes in 2021 and 6,924 in 2022 – the vast majority of which are located in rural areas indicating strong provision of new housing in all rural areas;

— there is no 'cap' or 'ban' on the granting of planning permission for new homes in rural areas; planning authorities provide a target for new housing as part of their statutory development plan process, including for rural areas outside of their towns and villages; nationally, rural housing continues to be an important component of overall new housing delivery with circa 4,000-5,000 new rural dwellings being built annually; and there was strong performance in 2022 with 4,743 new dwellings built in rural areas according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO) which was up 16.6 per cent from 4,069 in 2021;

— the challenges faced by An Bord Pleanála, with regard to the capacity of the Board and the pressures in terms of workload for the inspectorate to process decisions in a timely manner, have been addressed through significant efforts to facilitate additional board members and increases in staffing; and these measures are enabling the backlog of decisions to be tackled and increased permissions for new residential development; and

— the allocation of resources for local authorities to fulfill their planning functions in a timely manner is also a priority for Government and funding of €5 million has been provided for 2023 to assist in the staffing of local authorities;

— in relation to facilitating log cabins as a form of housing:

— national policy and legislation does not dictate the types of materials that must be used for housing, and accordingly there is no prohibition on the use of timber construction from a planning perspective subject to the overall proposal for planning permission being satisfactory having regard to national, regional and local planning policy;

— a wide range of exemptions from planning permission are provided for under the Planning and Development Act and the Planning and Development Regulations; and these exemptions are provided for when they are considered to be consistent with proper planning and sustainable development;

— regulations currently provide for an exemption in respect of the construction, erection or placing within the curtilage of a house of any tent, awning, shade or other object, greenhouse, garage, store, shed or other similar structure - subject to conditions and limitations;

— timber construction or timber materials used in the construction are facilitated under the exemption, which relates to the sole use of the home owner and does not entail the subdivision of an existing residential plot to establish separate dwelling on any given site;

— where an independent new dwelling is desired, an application for planning permission is required;

— an application for such permission provides an opportunity for members of the public to make submissions or observations in respect of the proposed development, while also providing the planning authority with the opportunity to consider a range of potential impacts in the area;

— the proposal may give rise to requirements for access, car parking, and amenity space as well as separate services such as water, drainage and electricity and may have implications for neighbouring occupiers and the visual amenity and character of the area and thus require assessment, with the result that a 'one-size fits all' planning exemption regime is not appropriate or consistent with proper planning and sustainable development;

— for these reasons it is appropriate that the subdivision of existing dwellings and/or residential plots is subject to seeking planning permission, thereby allowing for proper public participation and environmental assessment in line with the plan-led approach that underpins the planning system; and

— with regard to compliance with the Building Regulations or standards, it is critical to ensure that products, systems, and ultimately buildings which are comprised of such products and systems, are designed, constructed, and certified, as fit for purpose, having regard to their intended end use; and

— in relation to vehicular access for housing sites to national roads:

— planning applications for rural one-off housing are required to adhere to Spatial Planning and National Roads guidelines published by the then Department of Environment Community and Local Government in 2012;

— Section 2.5 of these Guidelines require planning authorities to avoid the creation of any additional accesses onto National Roads where speed limits of greater than 60 kilometers per hour apply; and this is in the interest of protecting the operational capacity of national road infrastructure and traffic safety; and

— the Guidelines provide for a less restrictive policy approach to be taken for certain transitional areas and lightly trafficked stretches of National Secondary Routes following assessment and in consultation with the National Roads Authority.".

-(Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage)

An Ceann Comhairle

I must now deal with a deferred division relating to amendment No. 1 in the name of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to the motion regarding planning and rural housing. Earlier today, on the question, "That the amendment to the motion be agreed to", a division was claimed and in accordance with Standing Order 80(2), that division must be taken now.

Amendment put:

The Dáil divided: Tá, 68; Níl, 58; Staon, 0.

Tá

• Browne, James.
• Bruton, Richard.
• Burke, Colm.
• Burke, Peter.
• Butler, Mary.
• Byrne, Thomas.
• Cahill, Jackie.
• Calleary, Dara.
• Cannon, Ciarán.
• Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
• Chambers, Jack.
• Collins, Niall.
• Costello, Patrick.
• Coveney, Simon.
• Cowen, Barry.
• Creed, Michael.
• Crowe, Cathal.
• Devlin, Cormac.
• Dillon, Alan.
• Donnelly, Stephen.
• Duffy, Francis Noel.
• Durkan, Bernard J.
• English, Damien.
• Farrell, Alan.
• Feighan, Frankie.
• Flaherty, Joe.
• Flanagan, Charles.
• Fleming, Sean.
• Foley, Norma.
• Griffin, Brendan.
• Harris, Simon.
• Haughey, Seán.
• Higgins, Emer.
• Humphreys, Heather.
• Kehoe, Paul.
• Lahart, John.
• Lawless, James.
• Leddin, Brian.
• Madigan, Josepha.
• Martin, Catherine.
• Matthews, Steven.
• McAuliffe, Paul.
• McConalogue, Charlie.
• McGrath, Michael.
• McHugh, Joe.
• Moynihan, Aindrias.
• Moynihan, Michael.
• Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
• Naughton, Hildegarde.
• Noonan, Malcolm.
• O'Brien, Darragh.
• O'Brien, Joe.
• O'Callaghan, Jim.
• O'Connor, James.
• O'Dea, Willie.
• O'Donnell, Kieran.
• O'Donovan, Patrick.
• O'Dowd, Fergus.
• O'Gorman, Roderic.
• O'Sullivan, Christopher.
• O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
• Ó Cathasaigh, Marc.
• Ó Cuív, Éamon.
• Rabbitte, Anne.
• Richmond, Neale.
• Ring, Michael.
• Smith, Brendan.
• Stanton, David.

Níl

• Andrews, Chris.
• Bacik, Ivana.
• Barry, Mick.
• Brady, John.
• Browne, Martin.
• Buckley, Pat.
• Cairns, Holly.
• Canney, Seán.
• Carthy, Matt.
• Clarke, Sorca.
• Collins, Michael.
• Conway-Walsh, Rose.
• Cronin, Réada.
• Crowe, Seán.
• Cullinane, David.
• Daly, Pa.
• Doherty, Pearse.
• Donnelly, Paul.
• Ellis, Dessie.
• Farrell, Mairéad.
• Funchion, Kathleen.
• Gannon, Gary.
• Gould, Thomas.
• Guirke, Johnny.
• Healy-Rae, Michael.
• Howlin, Brendan.
• Kelly, Alan.
• Kenny, Gino.
• Kenny, Martin.
• Kerrane, Claire.
• Lowry, Michael.
• Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
• MacSharry, Marc.
• McGrath, Mattie.
• McNamara, Michael.
• Mitchell, Denise.
• Murphy, Catherine.
• Murphy, Paul.
• Nash, Ged.
• Nolan, Carol.
• O'Callaghan, Cian.
• O'Donoghue, Richard.
• O'Rourke, Darren.
• Ó Broin, Eoin.
• Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
• Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
• Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán.
• Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
• Quinlivan, Maurice.
• Ryan, Patricia.
• Shanahan, Matt.
• Sherlock, Sean.
• Shortall, Róisín.
• Smith, Bríd.
• Stanley, Brian.
• Tully, Pauline.
• Ward, Mark.
• Whitmore, Jennifer.

Staon

Tellers: Tá, Deputies Hildegarde Naughton and Cormac Devlin; Níl, Deputies Mattie McGrath and Richard O'Donoghue.

Amendment declared carried.

Question put: "That the motion, as amended, be agreed to."

The Dáil divided: Tá, 69; Níl, 57; Staon, 0.

Tá

• Browne, James.
• Bruton, Richard.
• Burke, Colm.
• Burke, Peter.
• Butler, Mary.
• Byrne, Thomas.
• Cahill, Jackie.
• Calleary, Dara.
• Cannon, Ciarán.
• Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
• Chambers, Jack.
• Collins, Niall.
• Costello, Patrick.
• Coveney, Simon.
• Cowen, Barry.
• Creed, Michael.
• Crowe, Cathal.
• Devlin, Cormac.
• Dillon, Alan.
• Donnelly, Stephen.
• Duffy, Francis Noel.
• Durkan, Bernard J.
• English, Damien.
• Farrell, Alan.
• Feighan, Frankie.
• Flaherty, Joe.
• Flanagan, Charles.
• Fleming, Sean.
• Foley, Norma.
• Griffin, Brendan.
• Harris, Simon.
• Haughey, Seán.
• Higgins, Emer.
• Humphreys, Heather.
• Kehoe, Paul.
• Lahart, John.
• Lawless, James.
• Leddin, Brian.
• Madigan, Josepha.
• Martin, Catherine.
• Martin, Micheál.
• Matthews, Steven.
• McAuliffe, Paul.
• McConalogue, Charlie.
• McGrath, Michael.
• McHugh, Joe.
• Moynihan, Aindrias.
• Moynihan, Michael.
• Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
• Naughton, Hildegarde.
• Noonan, Malcolm.
• O'Brien, Darragh.
• O'Brien, Joe.
• O'Callaghan, Jim.
• O'Connor, James.
• O'Dea, Willie.
• O'Donnell, Kieran.
• O'Donovan, Patrick.
• O'Dowd, Fergus.
• O'Gorman, Roderic.
• O'Sullivan, Christopher.
• O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
• Ó Cathasaigh, Marc.
• Ó Cuív, Éamon.
• Rabbitte, Anne.
• Richmond, Neale.
• Ring, Michael.
• Smith, Brendan.
• Stanton, David.

Níl

• Andrews, Chris.
• Bacik, Ivana.
• Barry, Mick.
• Brady, John.
• Browne, Martin.
• Buckley, Pat.
• Cairns, Holly.
• Canney, Seán.
• Carthy, Matt.
• Clarke, Sorca.
• Collins, Michael.
• Cronin, Réada.
• Crowe, Seán.
• Cullinane, David.
• Daly, Pa.
• Doherty, Pearse.
• Donnelly, Paul.
• Ellis, Dessie.
• Farrell, Mairéad.
• Funchion, Kathleen.
• Gannon, Gary.
• Gould, Thomas.
• Guirke, Johnny.
• Healy-Rae, Michael.
• Howlin, Brendan.
• Kelly, Alan.
• Kenny, Gino.
• Kenny, Martin.
• Kerrane, Claire.
• Lowry, Michael.
• Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
• MacSharry, Marc.
• McGrath, Mattie.
• McNamara, Michael.
• Mitchell, Denise.
• Murphy, Catherine.
• Murphy, Paul.
• Nash, Ged.
• Nolan, Carol.
• O'Callaghan, Cian.
• O'Donoghue, Richard.
• O'Rourke, Darren.
• Ó Broin, Eoin.
• Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
• Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
• Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán.
• Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
• Quinlivan, Maurice.
• Ryan, Patricia.
• Shanahan, Matt.
• Sherlock, Sean.
• Shortall, Róisín.
• Smith, Bríd.
• Stanley, Brian.
• Tully, Pauline.
• Ward, Mark.
• Whitmore, Jennifer.

Staon

Tellers: Tá, Deputies Hildegarde Naughton and Cormac Devlin; Níl, Deputies Mattie McGrath and Richard O'Donoghue.

Question declared carried.

Cuireadh an Dáil ar athló ar 9.35 p.m. go dtí 9 a.m., Déardaoin, an 11 Bealtaine 2023.

The Dáil adjourned at 9.35 p.m. until 9 a.m. on Thursday, 11 May 2023.