[Press Release: March 31st, 2003]

DE BURCA CLAIMS COUNCIL OFFICIALS MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT MATTERS

Green Party councillor, Deirdre de Burca, has made a strong public statement about the importance of council officials being accountable to the public and to elected representatives of the council with regard to all aspects of council business. The Green Party councillor made this statement following the refusal of a planning official to meet with her concerning planning irregularities in Dunlavin. Councillor de Burca claimed she was surprised and alarmed to hear a council official argue that he was "too busy" to meet with her to discuss unauthorised planning in Dunlavin.

"The importance of council officials being accountable to the public and to elected members cannot be overstated" says councillor de Burca. "The alternative is a system where unelected officials wield considerable power without having to be answerable to anybody. This inevitably leads to a corruption of what is supposed to be a public service".

The Green Party councillor points out that she wished to discuss several serious planning irregularities in Dunlavin with the official in question. "I met with this planning official before Christmas regarding a number of townhouses in Dunlavin that had availed of Town Renewal Funding and that had proceeded to develop well beyond the terms of their planning permission" she says. "In effect, as well as getting State funding to build these townhouses, the developer in question is now leasing them out and making money from an unauthorised development. This is clearly unacceptable".

Councillor de Burca claims that she wished to meet with the council official in question because another situation had arisen in Dunlavin where an individual who had received planning permission to build an extension onto his supermarket had proceeded to build apartments for which he had no planning permission. This individual has since applied for retention planning permission.

"I would like to know what is happening in Dunlavin as regards planning " says councillor de Burca. "It appears that you can build anything you like where you like, as long as you apply for retention planning permission afterwards. I want to know what is going on in Dunlavin and I get very worried when the council official responsible refuses to meet with me to discuss the matter. I have since spoken to the Director of Planning, Mr Brian Doyle, and he assures me that the official's refusal to meet me was completely out of line with council policy and that he will sort out the matter immediately. This is a relief as the last thing we need in Wicklow are council officials acting without any sense of having to be accountable to the public and their elected representatives".

For further information please contact Deirdre de Burca on 086 8061450 or email deburca@wicklowgreens.org.