According to the Irish Times, Minister for the Environment John Gormley is undertaking a review of how planning laws and policy have been implemented in a number of Local Authorities across the country.
The review is being undertaken using powers available under Section 255 of the Planning Act, which allows the Minister to request information relating to the performance of the functions of the planning authority. Mr Gormley said the review would focus on providing an understanding of why certain decisions were taken and hoped it would work towards developing a more rigorous and robust planning system.
Decisions taken by Dublin City Council, Carlow County Council, Galway County Council, Cork City Council, Cork County Council and Meath County Council will be reviewed by independent planning investigators on behalf of the Department of the Environment. Councils will have a four week period to provide a response.
Justin Gleeson
Ireland after NAMA 
June 22, 2010 at 10:12 am
Good! But 20 years too late. Has it ever been done before now, by anyone who might think overdevelopment is bad?
What will the brown paper bag brigade do now?
June 22, 2010 at 10:31 am
No Matter how much the country develops its always less, so i don’t thing there is any term related to over development
June 22, 2010 at 11:40 am
Bout time that some Minister would instigate an enquiry into how the planning system is being abused, was abused, and will continue to be abused. The unfortunate thing is, that so much damage has been done through reckless over development over the past twenty years, that it will take more than this minister to sort it out.
He will be gone in less than two years anyway, and then what?
June 22, 2010 at 1:36 pm
Could it be that a Councils were more interested in the large sums of money they would get if they granted a planning permission rather than turned it down?
Dublin City Council had an ugly love affair with ugly buildings and inappropriate high rise which they pushed the envelope for all over the city despite it being contrary to the city development plan. Also, the protection of heritage buildings by them has been dismal and borders on the criminally irresponsible. They deliberately understaffed this unit because they wanted the said buildings gone.
Henrietta Street was left to decay further during the boom and is still being left rot away. The officials who presided over the vandalisation and destruction of conservation areas and listed buildings, our heritage are like the bankers who were incompetent and greedy. The planning system is now being abused daily by NAMA who’s only agenda is money. Just as the gods of developers before them. NAMA is now running with the baton nothing has changed. McDowell should there.