Planning and Development Bill 2023 is published
- Published on: 21 November 2023
- Last updated on: 22 January 2024
- at over 700 pages in length, Minister O’Brien describes the legislation as “the cornerstone for Irish planning for the coming decades”
- Draft Bill published in January has undergone months of Oireachtas scrutiny and stakeholder engagement
- Bill is culmination of intensive review lead by the Office of the Attorney General
- Current Act, operating since 2000, has undergone a ‘complete fitness check’ to identify reforms to deliver key infrastructure in housing, transport and renewable energy
Key reforms include:
- improved consistency and alignment throughout all tiers of planning
- significant restructuring and resourcing of An Bord Pleanála, which will be renamed An Coimisiún Pleanála
- increased certainty across the planning system through the introduction of statutory timelines for decision-making, including for the first time, for An Coimisiún Pleanála
- new strategic ten year Development Plans for Local Authorities
- reform of planning Judicial Review, including the introduction of a Scale of Fees and Environmental Legal Cost Financial Assistance Mechanism; improving access to justice whilst regulating excessive legal costs
- new provisions for Urban Development Zones, underpinning key growth areas
Speaking on the publication of the Bill, Minister O’Brien remarked:
“I am delighted that, after a rigorous process of legal review, stakeholder engagement and scrutiny by the Oireachtas, we today publish the Planning and Development Bill 2023. This Bill is momentous not only in its size but in its significance to nearly every aspect of people’s lives from infrastructure to tackling the climate transition.
"This Bill impacts so many areas from housing to roads; from renewable energy to environmental and architectural conservation; it is critical that everyone works together to ensure this cornerstone legislation proceeds through the Houses of Oireachtas so it can underpin Ireland’s continued growth and prosperity for the coming decades.”
The Planning and Development Bill is accompanied by a comprehensive Explanatory Memorandum.
An updated Guide to the Planning and Development Bill 2023 is available here: Guide to the Planning and Development Bill 2023.
A Regulatory Impact Analysis for the Planning and Development Bill 2023 is available here: Regulatory Impact Analysis of the Planning and Development Bill 2023.