Irish Examiner view: Can changes restore planning board's battered reputation?

Proposed new ethics and compliance unit will aim to address potential conflicts of interest

An Bord Pleanála has been under intense scrutiny.

It’s been a rocky few months for An Bord Pleanála, the nation’s independent planning body.

It lost deputy chairman Paul Hyde back in July amid inquiries into his planning decisions, and the organisation has remained under intense scrutiny since. Little wonder that chairman Dave Walsh acknowledged the impact of that scrutiny in a recent mail to staff in the embattled state body.