UNCERTAINTIES about the time it can take to procure a planning permission are costing Ireland foreign investment and jobs, the Minister of State for Finance with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, Mr Hugh Coveney, said yesterday.
Mr Coveney said that in attracting foreign investments, Ireland was losing out to countries with a clearly defined planning procedure where companies were told exactly how long they would have to wait for planning permission.
Mr Coveney told the 12th Annual Environmental Conference, organised by Sherkin Island Marine Station in Cork, that when companies asked State agencies when they could start on their projects, the truthful answer must be: "We don't know".
While State agencies could give a good estimate of the time by referring to the statutory periods to consider the application and any subsequent appeal, they could not rule out the need for an Environment Impact Study and the delay it might cause.
While it might appear reasonable for local authorities to seek further information in complex cases, investing companies did not always see it as such, particularly when they could go to another jurisdiction and get planning permission within a specified time.
Mr Coveney pointed to Cork's loss of a 2,000 job Siemens plant to Newcastle, in England, last year. Cork County Council did everything to accommodate the company but Siemens was guaranteed planning permission in Newcastle within one month.
Stressing that he was in favour of maintaining high environmental standards, Mr Coveney suggested that Ireland should adopt a development plan led planning process, as operated by most of Ireland's competitors for investment.
"In effect, what happens is that once a development is compatible with what is contained in the development plan, it will go through without recourse to third party objectors," he said.
The Bord Pleanala Chief Officer, Mr John Carroll, told the conference there was no political interference in the board's decisions.
As a result of all the appeals in 1995, 41 per cent of the decisions of planning authorities were confirmed, 36 per cent were varied and 23 per cent were reversed he said.