Planning and Development Act 2024
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Issuance of draft direction by Office of Planning Regulator | ||
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39. (1) On receipt of a direction of the Minister to issue a draft direction under this Chapter, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall within 10 working days, subject to subsection (4), issue a draft direction, which if issued to a regional assembly in a direction issued by the Minister under section 40 would require— | ||
(a) a regional spatial and economic strategy to be amended in the manner specified in the draft direction, and | ||
(b) the regional assembly to implement the amendment referred to in paragraph (a) and publish the regional spatial and economic strategy as so amended. | ||
(2) A draft direction issued under subsection (1) may identify any provision of a regional spatial and economic strategy that is the subject of the draft direction the operation of which, in the opinion of the Office of the Planning Regulator, ought to be suspended pending the making of a recommendation under this section and consideration of the recommendation and the making of a decision by the Minister under subsection (4) of section 40 . | ||
(3) Where a draft direction issued under subsection (1) identifies a provision in accordance with subsection (2), the operation of the provision concerned shall be suspended from the date of the draft direction until the date a decision is made by the Minister under subsection (4) of section 40 . | ||
(4) Before issuing a draft direction under subsection (1), the Office of the Planning Regulator shall— | ||
(a) conduct a screening assessment in accordance with the Strategic Environmental Assessment Regulations to determine whether the draft direction, if issued and complied with, would be likely to have significant effects on the environment, and | ||
(b) conduct a screening assessment in accordance with Part 6 to determine whether the draft direction, if issued and complied with, would be likely to have significant effects on any European site. | ||
(5) (a) Where it is determined under paragraph (a) of subsection (4) that a strategic environmental assessment is required, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall prepare an environmental report in accordance with the Strategic Environmental Assessment Regulations. | ||
(b) Where it is determined under paragraph (b) of subsection (4) that an appropriate assessment is required, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall prepare a Natura impact report in accordance with Part 6 . | ||
(6) Where the Office of the Planning Regulator issues a draft direction in accordance with subsection (1), it shall— | ||
(a) publish a notice of the issuance of the draft direction on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Office of the Planning Regulator and in one or more newspapers circulating in the region of the regional assembly that made the regional spatial and economic strategy concerned, | ||
(b) direct the regional assembly to publish notice of the issuance of the draft direction on a website maintained by or on behalf of the regional assembly, and | ||
(c) send a copy of the notice published under paragraph (a), together with a copy of the draft direction, to— | ||
(i) the Minister, | ||
(ii) the director of the regional assembly, | ||
(iii) the members of the regional assembly concerned, | ||
(iv) where the region of the regional assembly includes a Gaeltacht, the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Údarás na Gaeltachta, Foras na Gaeilge and Oifig an Choimisinéara Teanga, | ||
(v) the Commission, | ||
(vi) the National Transport Authority, and | ||
(vii) any other body, as the Office of the Planning Regulator considers appropriate. | ||
(7) A notice published under paragraph (a) of subsection (6) shall— | ||
(a) state that the Office of the Planning Regulator has issued a draft direction in accordance with subsection (1), | ||
(b) state that a determination has been made that strategic environmental assessment, or appropriate assessment, or both, as the case may be, is or is not required in respect of the draft direction, | ||
(c) state that copies of the draft direction, determinations made in accordance with subsection (4) and any environmental report or Natura impact report prepared in accordance with subsection (5) will be made available for inspection by members of the public at such place and for such period as is specified in the notice, | ||
(d) state that such copies will also be available for inspection on the website maintained by or on behalf of the Office of the Planning Regulator and of the regional assembly concerned, | ||
(e) invite written submissions with respect to the draft direction and, where applicable, the strategic environmental assessment or appropriate assessment, before the expiration of such period (being not less than 4 weeks from the date of the notice) as is specified in the notice, and | ||
(f) state that any such submissions made within the period specified in the notice shall be taken into account by the Office of the Planning Regulator in making a recommendation to the Minister as to whether to issue a direction in the terms of the draft direction and in the summary of submissions submitted to the Minister under subsection (12), which will be considered by the Minister in deciding whether to issue a direction under section 40 . | ||
(8) Subject to subsections (9), (10) and (11), the Office of the Planning Regulator shall, not later than 6 weeks after the expiry of the period specified in a notice published under paragraph (a) of subsection (6), and having considered any submissions received in relation to a draft direction issued under subsection (1), including any submissions received from the director and members of the regional assembly— | ||
(a) recommend that the Minister issue a direction under section 40 in the terms of the draft direction, | ||
(b) recommend that the Minister issue a direction under section 40 in an amended form to take account of any submissions made pursuant to subsection (7), or | ||
(c) recommend that the Minister not issue a direction under section 40 . | ||
(9) Where the Office of the Planning Regulator, following consideration of any submissions received, is of the opinion that none of the criteria in paragraphs (a) to (d) of subsection (8) of section 38 is met, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall make a recommendation under paragraph (c) of subsection (8), without prejudice to the power of the Office of the Planning Regulator to carry out further assessments pursuant to subsection (2) of section 38 . | ||
(10) (a) Where it is determined under paragraph (a) of subsection (4) that a strategic environmental assessment is required, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall, prior to issuing a recommendation to the Minister under paragraphs (a) or (b) of subsection (8), carry out a strategic environmental assessment in respect of the draft direction that it is recommending that the Minister issue. | ||
(b) Where it is determined under paragraph (b) of subsection (4) that an appropriate assessment is required, the Office of the Planning Regulator shall, prior to issuing a recommendation to the Minister under paragraphs (a) or (b) of subsection (8), carry out an appropriate assessment in respect of the draft direction that it is recommending that the Minister issue. | ||
(11) A recommendation to the Minister under subsection (8) shall be accompanied by a report of the Office of the Planning Regulator setting out— | ||
(a) a copy of the draft direction issued under subsection (1), | ||
(b) a summary of any written submissions received from the director and members of the regional assembly in relation to the draft direction, | ||
(c) a summary of any written submissions received from any other person in relation to the draft direction (and the report may, for this purpose, group and summarise the issues raised in different submissions on a thematic basis), | ||
(d) an analysis and evaluation by the Office of the Planning Regulator of any written submissions referred to in paragraphs (b) and (c), | ||
(e) the reasons for the recommendation of the Office of the Planning Regulator, | ||
(f) where the Office of the Planning Regulator is recommending that the Minister issue a direction under section 40 in an amended form, a copy of the proposed amended draft direction, and | ||
(g) where required, the strategic environmental assessment or appropriate assessment, or both, as the case may be, carried out by the Office of the Planning Regulator under subsection (10) in relation to the direction which it is recommending that the Minister issue. | ||
(12) A copy of the recommendation and report sent to the Minister under subsections (8) and (11), and any submissions made in relation to the draft direction, shall be— | ||
(a) made available on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Office of the Planning Regulator, and | ||
(b) sent to the regional assembly concerned. | ||
(13) The Minister may prescribe a period or periods that shall be disregarded for the purposes of reckoning any period referenced in this section. |