Cullen announces one-off housing regulations

Environment Minister Martin Cullen has announced the new regulations governing the construction of one-off houses in rural areas.

The regulations stipulate that people who live in an area or contribute to the locality should be entitled to build a one-off house in that area.

Local authorities throughout the country have mounted crackdowns on the proliferation of one-off houses in rural areas, a move that has been criticised by the Taoiseach and the Minister for Rural Affairs.

Environmental groups and planning authorities argue that such houses are unsustainable and detrimental to the beauty of the Irish countryside.