'Too much tolerance' towards objections in our planning system, says Chambers

The enterprise minister 'said “everything is on the table” on changing internal government regulations to speed up infrastructure delivery.

Enterprise minister jack chambers said the Government would be taking a 'blank canvas' approach to reforming existing infrastructure processes within departments. Picture: Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews.ie

There is “too much tolerance” within the planning system for objections to key infrastructure such as housing and renewable energy that are "frustrating the broader public good”, the public expenditure minister has said.

Jack Chambers cited objections to housing projects in local areas, particularly those criticising the impact of a development on the character of a certain area.

“There’s too much tolerance for this in how systems are designed, I’m seeing examples in recent months of housing getting stopped because it undermines the character of the area. What does that mean?” Mr Chambers said.

“For me, its about housing, it’s about infrastructure, and cutting through some of the nonsense which is just impeding the broader economic and social objective.”

The public expenditure minister was speaking as he formally launched a new infrastructure division of his department, as well as an expert taskforce to examine regulations slowing down project delivery.

The last number of years have shown how too many individuals have had too much a say in impeding infrastructure and housing across our economy.

“We have countless examples across our economy where the public good is being undermined by people who are in housing and are trying to frustrate the broader public good, similar with renewable energy projects.”

Pressed on his comments about the character of an area, Mr Chambers said that additional housing would not impede on the makeup of a locale.

“The fact that people think they have a veto on more people living around them, I think, is a mindset that has to change,” Mr Chambers said.

“It’s just a frustration I see and hear from many young people who would like to live in many urban areas, but they have people who’ve lived in places for decades objecting to housing on the basis of character of an area.

I think it is a nebulous reference that just seeks to block and object the broader social and economic objective.

Mr Chambers said there would be a close link between his department’s new infrastructure division and the department of housing’s new Sstrategic housing activation office.

The minister said the Government would be taking a “blank canvas” approach to reforming existing infrastructure processes within departments.

“Everything that impedes accelerated delivery is under consideration and review,” Mr Chambers said.

“We have a clear infrastructure deficit with some of the slowest system of delivery and we can’t allow that to continue if we want to be competitive as an economy.”

He said “everything is on the table” on changing internal government regulations to speed up infrastructure delivery.

Pressed if this meant the Government would be going into a period of deregulation, Mr Chambers said there needs to be balanced regulation.

“An endless regulation which constrains infrastructure or housing delivery in our economy isn’t, in my view, in the long-term economic or social interests of the State.”

On major infrastructure projects taking years to develop and complete, he said the “clear focus” is to avoid having proposals lasting endless amounts of time,

“When it comes to public transport projects, the fact that we were given a project life cycle taking 10 to 15 years, we just can’t accept that in future,” he said.

“That’s why any steps we need to take to truncate decision making or delivery are all part of the agenda we’re developing.”