Local councillors lobbying on behalf of politically well-connected applicants have been blamed by the Irish Planning Institute (IPI) for causing frustration, anger and confusion over the contentious issue of rural housing.
The institute, which represents professional planners, says some of this public frustration arises from a high degree of inconsistency in the application of planning policies throughout the country.
Denying that there is any "ban" on one-off housing in rural areas, the IPI says: "On the contrary, there is a largely laissez-faire approach, the evidence of which can be all too clearly seen throughout rural areas of Ireland."
It was also "commonplace" for county councillors to exercise their role as lobbyists on behalf of individual applicants for one-off houses, "even where the proposed house directly contravenes the policies of the development plan".
In a policy paper designed to influence forthcoming national guidelines on housing in the countryside, the IPI says the 2000 Planning Act should be amended to debar granting permission for proposals that contravene county development plans.
"There is no doubt that applicants who are well-connected politically or skilled in the art of lobbying have a much better chance of success in applying for a one-off house than applicants without these connections or skills."
Clear and firm Government guidelines were also needed to resolve "inherent conflicts" between policies on rural housing contained in the National Spatial Strategy (2002) and stated policy on Sustainable Development (1997).
Mr Iain Douglas, the IPI's president, said it was "critical to the future of the Irish countryside" that the forthcoming national guidelines should identify the need to make a clear distinction between urban areas and their rural context.
The institute's policy document says it should be mandatory for all local authorities to adopt rural housing policies that comply with the Government guidelines and to prepare design guidelines for such housing within 18 months.
It also says that planning policy should provide positively for those who wish to build their own house to individual designs by requiring county councils to provide serviced sites on the outskirts of towns, villages and other settlements.
The adoption of such a positive approach to the issue "would succeed in meeting rural housing needs in a sustainable fashion and support important rural facilities such as schools, local shops, sports clubs, churches etc," the IPI says.
However, Mr Douglas warned that this approach will work only if it is accompanied by control and consistency in approach to urban generated one-off housing in the open countryside.
