Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1037:

In page 537, between lines 7 and 8, to insert the following: “(8) In this section—

“application” includes a submission of a scheme for approval under section 49 of the Roads Act 1993, an application for approval under section 51 of the Roads Act 1993, and an application for a railway order under section 37 of the Transport (Railway Infrastructure) Act 2001; “party” includes a person who submitted a scheme for approval under section 49 of the Roads Act 1993, made an application for approval under section 51 of the Roads Act 1993 or made an application for a railway order under section 37 of the Transport (Railway Infrastructure) Act 2001, and the planning authority in whose functional area the development the subject of the submission or application is situated.”.

These amendments reinstate certain provisions relating to road and railway orders that applied under the Planning and Development Act 2000. Road orders are sought under the Roads Act 1993 and railway orders under the Transport (Railway Infrastructure) Act 2001. Currently, these applications are dealt with by An Bord Pleanála under these Acts. This will continue under the Bill, with applications for road and rail developments made to an coimisiún under those Acts. The Act of 2000 contained a provision that allowed any application to the board to be withdrawn or declared invalid.

Amendment No. 1037 amends section 342, which relates to the withdrawal and invalidity of applications to extend the power to withdraw applications to include road and railway order applications, as was previously provided for under the 2000 Act.

Amendments Nos. 1038 and 1039 extend the general powers of the commission under section 343 to appoint a person to report on any matter before the commission. This will include reporting on matters relating to applications for road and railway orders.

Amendment No. 1086 amends the definition of "application" in Part 17 relating to the governance and organisational matters of the commission to include road and railway order applications. This will have the effect of applying matters relating to applications in Part 17 to road and railway order applications also. For example, under section 433(11), the chief officer shall take all practical steps to determine applications efficiently and expeditiously.

Under section 436(5), procedures should be put in place for dealing with applications under section 437(2). Such procedures should be reviewed every two years.

Under section 438(3), the Minister can increase the number of planning commissioners, where the number of applications to be decided upon warrants it. All of these examples would now include references to applications for roads and railway orders. I may bring forward further amendments on roads and railway orders on Report Stage.

The other grouped amendments are the Cathaoirleach's own ones.