2nd March 2004

PRESS RELEASE

GREEN PARTY TO QUESTION MARTIN CULLEN ON HIS INTERVENTION IN DUN LAOGHAIRE DEVELOPMENT PLAN IN THE DAIL TODAY

In response to Minister Cullen's demands for more land rezoning in the Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown area, Green Party TDs Ciarán Cuffe and Eamon Ryan will today seek an adjournment debate in the Dáil on the following motion.

"To call on the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to explain the reasons for his unprecedented intervention to instruct Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council to rezone additional green belt land for housing as part of their new development plan."

The Green Party has accused Martin Cullen of putting a gun to the head of county councillors in Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown. Mr Cullen, Minister for the Environment, wrote to the councillors instructing them to rezone more land in order to comply with the County's Housing Strategy.

Green Party Planning Spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe TD today stated that, "It just doesn't make sense to rezone more land in a high amenity area. Minister Cullen is using out-of-date figures in order to justify covering a green belt in concrete."

Eamon Ryan TD added that, "The draft Dún Laoghaire Development Plan is already rezoning  land  up  into  the  Dublin hills and in the last remaining green belt areas. Meanwhile, the population in the more traditional suburbs is declining as young couples with children cannot afford to buy the housing areas, which are so well-suited to young families. Instead of amending the stamp duty laws or trying other creative measures to tackle this affordability problem, the Minister is adopting a 'slash and burn' planning policy. His approach will result in housing being provided without the necessary public transport, schools or shops - all the amenities that make an area livable."

Ciarán Cuffe TD said that,  "A 'predict and provide' strategy that blindly follows existing trends just does not make sense. All around Ireland lands are being rezoned for housing in inappropriate areas. New housing estates are being built without the most basic facilities.

Minister Cullen's silence with regard to the unsustainable zoning that has occurred in the other counties surrounding Dublin is telling.  We want Minister Cullen to reconsider his advice for Dún Laoghaire and spend more of his time promoting sustainable development."

"The Green Party made a comprehensive submission to the County Council in the course of the preparation of the draft Development Plan.

Our analysis shows that there is more than enough land already zoned to provide for development over the next five years.   It makes no sense for Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown to follow a simple policy of maintaining a 9.5% share of the total population of the Greater Dublin  Area as identified in the Strategic Planning Guidelines, when the nature of  development around Dublin has changed so dramatically since those guidelines were written," Ciarán Cuffe TD concluded.