No extension to planning permission for one-off housing Cllrs told

Any hope that people who were previously granted planning permission for one-off houses in rural areas of Meath might get an extension to their permissions, has been dashed

At the September meeting of Meath Co Council Fianna Fail Cllr Tommy Reilly had received backing from fellow councillors to call on the Minister for Housing to extend the period of extension of time for previously granted one-off rural planning permission for an additional five-year extension of time. Under current regulations a planning permission lasts for five years. However, Cllr Reilly introduced a notice of motion saying the Minister should extend the time.

There were many reasons for this, he said, including the fact that a lot of people had been granted planning permission in the last couple of years and now could not get mortgages. This was due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Minister for Local Government and Planning Peter Burke has now written to the council saying that there are no plans to provide extensions to planning permissions.

He said that under Section 28 Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines 2005, planning authorities were required to frame the planning policies in their development plans in a balanced and measured way that ensured the housing needs of rural communities while avoiding excessive urban-generated housing.

Updated statutory Section 28 guidelines on rural housing were currently being drafted to ensure consistency with new requirements and legislation.

The draft guidelines to be published shortly will be placed on display for a period of time and submissions will be invited on these.