Government must invest in the planning system to accelerate infrastructure and housing delivery in Budget 2024, says Construction Industry Federation

Construction delegation will meet with Government on Monday 18^th September to outline budgetary recommendations.

The Construction Industry Federation is calling on the Government to allocate additional funding to ease bottlenecks across planning and delivery bodies to accelerate infrastructure and housing delivery in Budget 2024.

The federation will meet with Government on Monday, 18^th September to discuss its pre-budget submission. 

Hubert Fitzpatrick, Director General of the Construction Industry Federation said:

“One of the biggest challenges to delivering on infrastructure and housing is the current under-investment in the people, processes and technology that support the planning system. We look forward to the upcoming publication of the Planning and Development Bill, but the planning system is critically under-resourced in terms of its staffing levels, alongside its digital and administrative resourcing.

“While recent measures were announced to improve resourcing at An Bord Pleanála, it is imperative that we see an increase in the number of decisions of planning applications at An Bord Pleanála, in the coming weeks and months. There is a considerable backlog in planning applications that are delaying housing and infrastructure provision at a critical time in Ireland’s population and economic growth.

“Roll out of the national online planning portal should be accelerated to enable planning applications to be submitted digitally, encouraging faster, more efficient planning processes.

“Our growing population, which stands at over five million people, requires a surge in our levels of housing and infrastructure delivery, energy, water and transport upgrading, alongside the decarbonisation and digitalisation needed for a greener, future-proofed economy.

“It is critically important that implementation and time-critical decision making become features of our planning system, so that infrastructure is delivered in a timely and efficient manner to support growth.”

The federation’s pre-budget submission identifies recommendations on resourcing the planning system, infrastructure and regional development, residential supply, sustainability and cultivating people, skills and capacity.

Read the Construction Industry Federation’s Budget 2024 submission.

For media queries contact:

Meabh Smith

CIF Communications Director
0871338978