Land League is cited as councillor rails against planning decisions

A Mayo councillor has questioned whether it is a person or a site that is being granted planning permission. 

Erris-based Cllr Gerry Coyle made his comments at the recent meeting of Westport-Belmullet Municipal District, noting that he believed it was unconstitutional to ask people to prove they had ties to an area before granting them permission to build a home.

“If there was no name on an application, would it be the site that gets the planning?” he asked, adding: “And if that is the case, how can people be told they have no ties to the area that’s going to live in the house because I think what we are doing is totally unconstitutional."

Referencing the slogan of Land League founder Michael Davitt, 'The land of Ireland for the people of Ireland’, Cllr Coyle said recent planning decisions flew in the face of that principle, referencing one in Doohoma where permission was refused to a person with strong roots to the area. In that case, an inspector from An Coimisiún Pleanála had incorrectly stated that the nearest village was Bangor Erris. 

Cllr Coyle challenged the head of the municipal district Seamus O’Mongáin several times on the matter, after the official reiterated again and again that he “could not comment on individual planning applications” and would refer the matter to the planning section. However, after being pressed further by Cllr Coyle, who asked the manager had he himself ever disagreed with a decision made by the council's planning section, Mr O'Mongáin replied: “Yes is the answer, I have disagreed on occasion.”

Acknowledging the manager’s admission of having disagreed with a planning decision, Cllr Coyle went on to ask: “Was the [inspector] from An Coimisiún Pleanála right recently when he said about there being no village between Doohoma and Geesala? And did anyone from the council or the municipal district write to him to say, 'you are terribly wrong'. You are missing two villages from your decision.” 

Cllr Coyle said he supposed they had not “because whoever challenges [An Coimisiún Pleanála] has to pay their own solicitor costs, so I presume [the inspector] wasn’t written to”. 

When the manager would not confirm or deny whether a letter had been sent, Cllr Paul McNamara also asked: “If Cllr Coyle is correct and a planning inspector has said incorrectly there is no village, does Mayo County Council write to say you are incorrect in the information you have stated?” 

Mr O'Mongáin insisted: “It’s an individual case. I’m afraid I can’t discuss it”, to which Cllr McNamara stated: “Okay, can we propose here that if the information sent back out to the applicant, as in this case, is factually incorrect, can Mayo County Council write to An Coimisiún Pleanála saying a case was ruled on information that was factually incorrect, and outlining the correct information.” 

Cllr Coyle said that the council chief executive Kevin Kelly had said already he would write but it was "shocking" the municipal district hasn’t said it would write.  There was no further response from the council management on the issue.

• Published as part of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.