Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 11 December 2025
9. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the specific legal and regulatory reforms being implemented under the recently published Accelerating Infrastructure Action Plan; the timeline for when these measures, such as changes to judicial review processes and planning exemptions will take effect to reduce delays in housing, energy, and transport projects. [70377/25]
View answerThe Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan was published on Wednesday 3 December. It contains thirty actions that cross four key pillars of reform. These four pillars are Legal Reform, Regulatory Reform and Simplification, Coordination and Delivery Reform and Public Acceptance. Specifically, on legal reform there are seven actions that the Government will progress as a priority.
These actions seek to lessen the reliance on the courts as arbitrators of planning and regulatory decisions. The goal is not to dilute safeguards but to eliminate unnecessary duplication, provide more certainty to planning and regulatory decisions and hence, reduce the risk aversion that is slowing down processes. Reforms to judicial review are a key component of the legal reform package.
Judicial review is an important tool for challenging the legality of decisions by public bodies. However, as the administrative complexity of the State rises, the application of this test to a significant number of the decisions made by public bodies has the practical impact of delaying the development of critical infrastructure. This imposes very real costs on taxpayers and society in general. Nearly as many judicial reviews of An Coimisiún Pleanála planning decisions have been taken in the first six months of 2025 as in all of 2023.
In response, the Action Plan commits that Government will progress fundamental reform of the judicial review system through the enactment of a Civil Reform Bill. However, Government will also explore the scope for interim steps that might achieve a better balance of access to justice, while protecting the interests of taxpayers costs and the wider public good. The timelines and responsible bodies for these actions are detailed in the Action Plan.
In parallel with reforms to judicial review, legislation will be progressed to accelerate critical infrastructure and to provide for appropriate emergency powers. In addition, Government will increase the exemption thresholds for critical infrastructure where possible, allowing for more efficient expansion of existing facilities and will advance reforms that promote a more targeted and proportionate approach to environmental impact assessment.
By streamlining approval processes, removing duplication, and raising thresholds for environmental scrutiny, these reforms will shorten timelines for project approvals and free up resources. Legislative and procedural changes will achieve a better balance of individual rights and the common good, reducing the number of decisions subject to judicial review. The success of these actions will be measured by faster decisions, more efficient use of public resources, and a demonstrable improvement in the timeline for delivery of critical infrastructure projects.
