Planning and Development Bill passed by the Oireachtas

Yesterday evening, 10 October 2024, the Planning Bill was passed by the Oireachtas.

The final debate was guillotined after just over an hour. The last amendments made by the Seanad passed by vote in favour 72:60.

The next step is for the President to sign into law, and formally enact, within five to seven days. If he is minded to ask the Supreme Court to consider any part of the Bill before enactment, that decision will be made in the coming days. There may be provisions where it would help eliminate a proliferation of subsequent court cases to have the Supreme Court rule on the provisions before they are made into law.

The commencement into force of the vast bulk of the Bill must await secondary legislation (regulations to be made by the Minister), and most expect that work will not complete until after the next General Election.  We expect the next Government will have further amendments to make before the Bill is in force.

The reform process commenced with the Attorney General review in September 2021. The general scheme was published in January 2023. The Bill proper was published in November 2023. It started at 716 pages. There have been 100s of amendments. By July, it was 756 pages. Further amendments were made in September and approved yesterday. The final Bill will be published here, before long.