DPP asks for publication of An Bord Pleanála report to be delayed until after Garda probe

A spokesperson for the Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien said he “believes it is important that the report be published when it can be given the vital public interest in this matter”, File photo: Gareth Chaney/Collins Dublin

The Director of Public Prosecutions has recommended that a report into An Bord Pleanála not be published until after a Garda investigation has concluded.

The Irish Examiner understands that the DPP has requested that the Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien delay publication of a report into certain decisions and declarations made by former ABP deputy chair Paul Hyde until a decision has been made with regard to any possible prosecution.

That request means that the publication of the much-anticipated report is likely to be delayed for a considerable period of time. The investigation into Mr Hyde’s actions was commissioned in April by the Minister and was carried out by senior counsel Remy Farrell.

It was chiefly concerned with specific decisions made by Mr Hyde, among them his voting on a development in Cork city next to a property he co-owned but had failed to declare, and his approval of planning permission for an extension applied for by his sister-in-law and his brother in south Dublin.

The probe had also looked at whether or not the fact Mr Hyde had been involved in a number of High Court actions involving liquidations had represented a conflict of interest in terms of his role with the State planning authority.

Mr Hyde stepped back from his role with ABP in May “without prejudice” pending the result of the Farrell investigation. He has denied any wrongdoing.
He subsequently resigned from his role with the authority in July.

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Mr Farrell’s report was delivered to the Minister in late July. Earlier this month, the Minister referred the report, on foot of advice from the Attorney General, to the gardaí and the DPP to decide whether a criminal prosecution may be warranted.

Mr O’Brien said at the time that it was his wish that the report be “published as soon as possible” adding that he believed “the report is of important public interest”.

A spokesperson for the Minister said he “believes it is important that the report be published when it can be given the vital public interest in this matter”, adding he will "liaise further with the DPP following the conclusion of their work”.