Mayo councillors call for Office of Planning Regulator to be scrapped

Members of Mayo County Council have called on the Office of the Planning Regulator to be scrapped in order to allow towns in the county to grow and develop.

The Office of the Planning Regulator has come under intense criticism in recent months by local councillors for making submissions and objections to the zoning of extra land for housing in both the Castlebar and Westport local area plans.

A number of councillors called for the office to be scrapped at the monthly meeting of Mayo County Council where councillors were asked to note the submissions made by the local authority to the Draft Revised National Planning Framework.

Fine Gael councillor Jarlath Munnelly commended the councillors and the planners who worked on the submissions and it was important they make very robust submissions that covers all the basis to ensure the region develops into the future.

He said that there are currently too many obstacles to growth in the region and he felt that the Office of the Planning Regulator had too much influence over planning matters and called for it to be scrapped.

“I will go as far as saying that our submission here be asking for the role of the planning regulator to be abolished,” he said.

“Everyone here has a mandate which should be respected by everybody and we are well fit to make decisions on planning policy in this county. We don't need an unelected official in Dublin telling us what to do and I would be all for our submission to say the role of the planning regulator should be abolished,” he said.

Cllr Munnelly also added that a ceiling on population growth of towns should not be allowed in the western region and that 'the principle of allowing people to build in the countryside has to be enshrined in this document'.

The Killala-based councillor was supported by his Fine Gael party colleague, Cllr Donna Sheridan in calling for the Office of the Planning Regulator to be scrapped. She said that she and her council colleagues worked hard on the Castlebar Local Area Plan but they faced objections to their proposals from the Planning Regulator.

“I see the time and energy which went into the local area plan and it has to be scrapped by the planning regulator. People on the ground are not being listened to and the office needs to be abolished,” she said.

Fianna Fáil councillor Al McDonnell who was one of six councillors to work with council planners on the submissions said they made alterations to the document which they felt was necessary for the region. He added that they too wanted the authority of the Planning Regulator to be controlled.

“We have reservations about the assumed authority of the planning regulator and we have attempted to dilute that influence as best we could and that might be met with some resistance.

“The document itself in its original form was in my opinion surprisingly favourable to rural Ireland. Perhaps they are listening to us now and not before time about the exodus of our people from rural Ireland. They have acknowledged in their regional draft the facts that need to be addressed and I welcome that. The changes we made were significant also and I had a brief look through the amendment and I am happy with them,” he said.

Ballina-based councillor Mark Duffy also commented that it was important that local representatives have more of a say in relation to planning in towns in order to get houses built. He also asked for the development of the N26 to Ballina as well as an orbital route around the town and cycle routes to be included in the document.