Press release
Planning and Development, Maritime and Valuation (Amendment) Bill 2022
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
The Planning and Development, Maritime and Valuation (Amendment) Bill 2022 has this evening (14 July) been passed by Seanad Éireann, having been passed by the Dáil yesterday.
Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O’Brien has welcomed the reforms introduced by the introduction of this legislation, which include measures to bring more homes back into to the long-term rental market in Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) where rents are highest and where households have the greatest difficulty finding affordable accommodation.
The amendment means that from 1 September, online platforms will not be able to advertise properties in RPZs which do not have the requisite planning permission. Non-compliance with these provisions will be an offence for both the individual property owners concerned and the online platforms.
Currently under the Planning and Development Act 2000 (Exempted Development) (No. 2) Regulations 2019 a person must apply to their local authority for planning permission to change the use of the property, so it can be used for tourism and short-term letting purposes. Under the Planning and Development Act 2000 planning authorities can take legal action if a property does not have the required permission.
Commenting Minister O’Brien said:
“These reforms are particularly welcome, and timely. With significant numbers of properties having been withdrawn from the long-term rental market in recent years and diverted for use as short-term lettings, the impact on the supply and availability of private residential rental accommodation with associated knock-on implications for rental prices has been keenly felt by many. The use of online platforms has greatly enabled this trend, which been particularly acute in areas of high housing demand.
“We introduce these measures to strengthen further the regulations which are already in place. We are acting swiftly. These enhanced regulatory controls will be in place from 1 September, for a period of six months initially during which time the Department of Tourism alongside Fáilte Ireland will establish a new registration as committed to under Housing for All.
“Government are acutely aware of the pressures on the rental market at present and we expect that these new and significant controls will help to ease that pressure.”
A number of other important measures are introduced by way of this Bill.
The Bill amends the Planning and Development Act 2000 (the Act) to streamline the substitute consent procedure in the planning system, and in so doing, encourages the regularisation and remediation of unauthorised developments in certain exceptional circumstances.
Amendments to the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2020 enable the Commissioner of Valuation to defer the roll out of the national revaluation programme due to the unprecedented impact on the economy and the commercial property market since the beginning of COVID-19.
The technical amendments to provisions in the Maritime Area Planning Act 2021 include amendments to Maritime Area Consent provisions, amendments of provisions for the early appointment of the Chief Executive Officer designate by the Minister ahead of the establishment of the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) and amendments strengthening the enforcement provisions in the maritime area that will be available to MARA.
Since the April 2019 commencement of the Office of the Planning Regulator, a number of technical matters have come to light regarding the legislative procedures for progressing Ministerial directions on statutory plans. This Bill applies minor technical amendments to the Planning Act, required to address cross-referencing, standardised wording, notifications and consistency in procedure. These improvements will benefit all stakeholders including local authorities and the wider public.
The Bill introduces amendments relating to flexibility in planning applications to address a recent High Court Judgment concerning the design envelope approach in planning applications that require a degree of flexibility as the final details of the development may be unconfirmed at the planning application stage. The amendments will introduce a pre-application procedure to facilitate a subsequent planning application being made incorporating flexibility in respect of certain, specified details of the proposed development, while providing sufficient clarity to allow planning authorities to consider what level of information is appropriate on a case-by-case and providing appropriate safeguards for environmental assessment.
Amendments to the judicial review provisions in the Planning Act will require the Courts to consider whether there is an adequate appeal or other available administrative remedy and if so, it should not grant leave for judicial review. It is also proposed to provide for an effective presumption that the matter can be remitted back to the Board at the commencement of the legal proceedings so that errors can be corrected quickly, thereby avoiding delays associated with such proceedings.