PRESS RELEASE 20^th April 2004

GREEN PARTY TO QUIZ CULLEN ON PLANNING ENFORCEMENT FOLLOWING PRIMETIME DOCUMENTARY

The Green Party intends questioning the Minister for the Environment Martin Cullen TD in the Dáil next week following the revelations on last night’s RTE Primetime Report on planning in Ireland.

The Party will call on Mr. Cullen to state what steps he intends taking to improve Planning Enforcement in the State.

Green Party Planning Spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe stated: “In his 2000 Annual Report the Ombudsman described Irish Planning as a system which is in a state of collapse. Three years later there is little evidence that that matters have improved, even with the coming into force of the Planning and Development Act, 2000.”

“Martin Cullen must show leadership and clarify his commitment to enforcing the planning laws. It makes a mockery of the Planning System if developers can flout the law, knowing that that it may take months or years for the Planning Authorities to react to breaches in the law.”

The Green Party has tabled the following question to the Minister for the Environment for reply when the Dáil resumes next week.

“To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to detail what steps he intends taking to improve Planning Enforcement following the RTE Primetime Programme on 19th April 2004 which detailed serious failings in the Irish Planning System principally in the area of Planning Enforcement?”

ENDS