The Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín TD has expressed his disappointment after An Bord Pleanála refused a meeting request.
Speaking today, Deputy Tóibín said:
“In recent weeks we’ve been experiencing a big problem in the Dáil where Parliamentary Questions submitted to government Ministers by members of the opposition are going unanswered. The Ceann Chomhairle has announced an investigation into the matter. Separate to this problem I’ve noticed an increased tendency of Ministers to say that certain matters are not their responsibility. The Housing Minister, for example, would say he is not responsible for council houses, or the Minister for Justice would respond that he is not responsible for decisions in the Gardaí”.
Deputy Tóibín continued: “The lack of answers from Government Ministers and the constant deference or referral of requests to other State agencies has been most frustrating. In light of these issues, I have sought meetings directly with State agencies or entities to extract data from them. A big issue in the country at the moment is in relation to planning – the red tape and bureaucracy but also the extraordinary lengths of time people are left waiting for a decision on their application for planning permission for housing”.
“One of the questions I have is in relation to waiting times – I want to know how long on average people are left waiting for a decision. The Minister for Housing is refusing to answer my questions, so I asked An Bord Pleanála if I could meet with them to discuss some of my concerns. They have today written to me to inform me that they will not meet me. I am deeply disappointed with their refusal to engage on the issue. I explicitly told them, in my request, that I was not seeking to discuss any individual application, and that I was looking to talk about waiting times, but still they refuse. This represents a slap in the face to the 10,000 people who voted for me in November and the just under 100,000 people who voted for Aontú in last year’s elections. It is the job of the opposition to ask questions, to hold the government to account, and propose solutions – the State’s refusal to engage with us at present is a major deviation from the norm, and is highly undemocratic”, concluded Tóibín.
