The Government is set to introduce reforms aimed at reducing delays and addressing what it says is an “imbalance” between an individual’s right to object and the need to deliver major public infrastructure, reports RTE.
Thirty measures intended to remove obstacles to infrastructure delivery are included in the Accelerating Infrastructure action plan, which was published this morning, reports RTE.
Among the proposed actions are changes to the judicial review process, increased exemption thresholds for critical infrastructure, and the creation of a regulatory simplification unit to examine existing regulatory systems.
The plan also outlines proposals to draft legislation allowing certain projects to be designated as critical infrastructure “subject to Dáil resolution” and providing the Government with emergency powers to speed up their delivery, reports RTE.
The Government said the reforms seek to address an “imbalance” between an individual’s right to access the courts and the “common good.”
The report’s release comes as the Greater Dublin Drainage project, a major sewage scheme viewed as essential for housing development, faces delays due to a judicial review, reports RTE.
The Metro project in Dublin is also experiencing legal setbacks.
The report centres on reforms to the legal system, regulatory structures, and co-ordination and delivery, reports RTE.
The Taoiseach said he expects that the Government’s proposed changes to judicial reviews will themselves face legal challenges, reports RTE.
“There will be challenges, yes,” Micheál Martin said.
But he added that the funding needed to move projects forward is available and that Ireland is aligning with Europe to simplify processes and fast-track major developments.
He said legislation to cap legal costs relating to judicial reviews is progressing, having been approved by Cabinet, reports RTE.
“We believe the planning system is where these issues should be resolved, not the courts,” he added, reports RTE.
Mr Martin said transparency was essential when identifying obstacles, particularly around housing delivery.
He said such blockages should not have occurred, but noted that the new infrastructure division within DPER was helping address them, reports RTE.
“It shouldn’t take the intervention of a taoiseach or tánaiste or ministers to get agencies to do what Government has provided for and enabled to happen,” he said, reports RTE.
Referring to yesterday’s visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Taoiseach said Ireland needed greater energy independence by developing renewable infrastructure, reports RTE.
“On the overarching interest, offshore wind farms are, without question, in the overall public interest,” he said, reports RTE.
“The most effective thing we could do on climate and addressing climate is dramatically change our fuel, our energy, from imported fossil fuels to renewable wind,” he said, reports RTE.
“The LNG facility is a security imperative, absolutely… be under no illusion, we are very exposed and very vulnerable to the connectors, and that’s the bottom line,” he added, reports RTE.
The Tánaiste said a small group of “serial” objectors is delaying crucial infrastructure projects, reports RTE.
Simon Harris said he respected the public’s right to access the courts, but stressed that the common good must also be considered, reports RTE.
He said individuals are not entitled to an unlimited supply of public money to pursue legal challenges.
“We have to address the imbalance that currently exists, because it is holding the country back. There are projects that could’ve been delivered years ago [were it not for court cases],” he said, reports RTE.
Mr Harris said Ireland’s delivery system “is too slow” and blamed “regulatory delays, the planning bottlenecks, the duplication and fragmentation” for obstructing progress.
He said the Government’s acceleration plan “will result in an ability to build more homes” and enable “faster delivery” of projects, reports RTE.
“If we get this right… we will reduce by months and even years the timeline for delivering key projects earmarked for your area, your community, and, crucially, for our country,” he said, reports RTE.
Minister for Public Expenditure and Infrastructure Jack Chambers said any draft legislation proposed by the Government carries a “litigation risk.”
“We’ll confront any legal challenge head-on in the public interest,” he said, reports RTE.
“But we can’t shrink from doing the right thing because of the risk of litigation,” he added, reports RTE.
He said he wanted to increase the “risk appetite” of departments and agencies by “cutting some of the layers and procedures” that have built up in the system, which he believes will reduce delivery timelines, reports RTE.
Mr Chambers said: “We’re going to make a positive statement and set out a circular on increasing the risk appetite in the delivery life cycle,” reports RTE.
He said this could mean beginning enabling works during the planning phase, securing funding in advance, or procuring equipment early — all aimed at quicker decision-making.
“We’ve become trapped by process at the cost of progress,” he said, reports RTE.
“These barriers are structural, not isolated, and they demand urgent action. The cost of inertia is felt by every person in this country.
“It is most visible in housing, but also those stuck in endless traffic congestion, the business owner who can’t expand his offering, or the local community where untreated sewage flows into a nearby river,” he added, reports RTE.
Minister of State Marian Harkin said “this is not deregulation.”
“It is better and more efficient regulation, and we will work within the parameters of EU regulation,” she said, reports RTE.
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