Council criticised over spending on planning consultants

Members of Clare County Council have criticised the amount the council has spent on consultants in recent years on planning-related matters. This follows the council releasing figures showing that in the last two years it has paid €409,000 to planning consultants.

The figure includes €161,000 paid to consultants to prepare and subsequently defend the council's plans to Shannon Development for a visitor centre at the Cliffs of Moher.

Against the background of the council being forced to make cutbacks and shelving any move to establish its new €33 million headquarters, Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said yesterday: "I am extremely concerned at the costs associated with taking on planning consultants.

"It is beyond belief. Is there no limit to the number of consultants employed by the council?

"Surely, more of the work can be done in-house because we have the expertise and it is quite likely that we would get even better results because the council planners have a better sense than consultants of the needs of communities."

Almost 60 per cent of the money spent on planning consultants went to Colin Buchanan Consultants for its work on the South Clare Economic Corridor Local Area Plan. It was paid €231,000.

Cllr Michael Begley (FF) said: "I think everyone would accept that consultants are needed time to time on specific issues, but to help draw up development plans, they are not only unnecessary, but do not provide the expected benefit to communities."

He added: "Consultants would have received over €200,000 for the south Clare plan and a further €200,000 for the Ennis Development Plan, which is not included in the county council figures. This money would have built a lot of road around the county."

In response to the criticism, the council's head of planning, Mr Ger Dollard, said the council now only engaged consultants on specific issues if the council did not have the expertise in that field.

He said the council had ceased employing consultants in relation to the preparation of development plans.

Some of the higher earners arising from the council's engagement of consultants include Colin Buchanan Consultants, Notting Hill Gate, London, which received €231,000 for its work on the South Clare economic plan; Brady Shipman Martin, which received €46,366 on the Cliffs of Moher visitor centre; while O'Riordan Staehli Architects, of Douglas, Co Cork, received €47,352 for its work on the same project.