James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I came from the Committee of Public Accounts this morning, where we got a very thorough briefing on issues within An Bord Pleanála by its senior management. The members of senior management told us An Bord Pleanála is only processing 90 decisions per month, when it wishes to process 300. It has just €17.1 million in funding. We have a €26 billion of a surplus in tax revenues in the next two years. I am pleading with the Tánaiste to do something about the funding within An Bord Pleanála, to help it get to its desired target of 300 decisions per month, because it is holding up the construction of 65,000 homes in this country per year. The issue is purely administrative and very easily fixed. It needs both an international campaign and a very strong ground campaign to fill the vacancies within that organisation, which I know is a priority for the Government. However, I plead that more be done.

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