Local councillors have been urged by the Minister of State for Labour Affairs, Mr Frank Fahey, not to allow county managers or planning officials to "dictate what's best for rural Ireland".
Addressing a conference of the Local Authority Members Association in Galway, he said it was up to councillors to make county development plans and up to county managers and their staff to implement them.
"It concerns me that in my 30 years as an elected representative I have rarely seen the type of dictatorial approach which has been evident by senior management and planning officials in Galway County Council," he told the association.
Mr Fahey welcomed the fact that, five months after its adoption, Galway county councillors had decided to carry out material alterations to the plan "to ensure their wishes are complied with" in relation to rural housing.
Though planning had to be in line with the Government's policy on sustainable development, it seemed that some planning officials in the west interpreted this as meaning that one-off houses should only be built in exceptional circumstances.
"Let's be quite clear about it: where one-off rural housing does not interfere with the scenic amenity of a rural area and complies with the very strict environmental standards on water quality and pollution control, then housing should be allowed," the Minister of State said.
Mr Fahey said the idea that dispersed rural housing was a blight on the landscape "does not accord with housing patterns in rural Ireland for several hundred years" and he rejected outright the suggestion that it was "anti-environment".
Welcoming the Taoiseach's recent statement on the issue, he said: "It is the obligation of members elected to local authorities to legislate responsibly to ensure that one-off housing can continue to develop in the countryside".
Mr Fahey said it was "short-sighted to blame organisations like An Taisce for the difficulties which exist in the development of a positive policy on rural housing" because it had an important statutory role to play in ensuring balance.
But he found it difficult to understand "the zealous approach which emanates from individuals in such organisations from time to time" and urged councillors to ensure that "we don't allow ourselves to be 'planned out' of existence".
The Galway county manager, Mr Donal O'Donoghue, was away yesterday and the county secretary, Mr Tony Murphy, was not prepared to comment on Mr Fahey's address.
"We have no comment to make as of now," he said.
