AN BORD PLEANÁLA requires a “complete reset” with significant changes to its governance needed, the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR) has recommended.

The OPR’s latest report recommends that the Government introduce sweeping changes to tackle issues at An Bord Pleanála (ABP), including issues arounds governance and transparency.

Concerns are also raised over the morale of employees at ABP, with the body said to be facing an “internal crisis”.

The report comes just days after the Government approved new plans to reform the planning system, alongside changes to ABP around its governance as well as its name.

It also follows the OPR’s previous report, which was published in October, which issued 11 recommendations to help restore the public’s confidence in the planning body.

In total, there are 23 recommendations made by the OPR on ABP, including a recommendation for overall reform of how the body operates.

The report says that an organisational change is required due to the “wider and increased operational demands” that are now being placed on the planning body.

It says that ABP’s future is currently in a “critical state”, with a backlog of cases, reduced staff morale and the need for reform set to require a strong leadership team who can rebuild trust.

“It must be recognised that it will take time to implement this report’s recommendations and further time still to restore public confidence in An Bord Pleanála. The period ahead will not be easy, but we believe that the steps suggested are vital in the public interest,” the report reads.

Recommendations

The OPR says that a “radically new” organisational approach is required, which would include having ABP lead by a Chief Executive Officer, who would oversee the day-to-day running of the planning body.

However, the decisions on planning applications would instead be overseen by a Chief Planning Commissioner.

To address issues around transparency of decisions, the OPR has recommended that all board members take an oath to “fulfil their duties faithfully, honestly, impartially, without respect to person and to the best of their ability and understanding”.

It also recommends the provision of administrative support as well as better record-keeping by the ABP secretariat.

There is also a call to introduce a list of reasons why a board member can disagree with a planning inspector on a recommendation.

The OPR also recommends that ABP improve their quality assurance systems for inspectors’ reports, saying that it is needed to provide a “high degree of confidence” in the thoroughness of the reports.

The report comes following months of controversy at the planning body, with allegations of conflicts of interest eventually leading to the resignation of Deputy Chairperson Paul Hyde in early July.

Hyde has denied all allegations levelled against him.

The former chair of ABP, Dave Walsh, announced in November that he would be retiring early from the role, citing family reasons.

Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien has since appointed Oonagh Buckley, a former Deputy Secretary General at the Department of Justice, as interim chair of ABP.

The report details how there is an “internal crisis” at ABP among staff members, with employees said to be “demoralised” and concerned about management practices at the planning body.

“The interviews and staff survey suggest a demoralised workforce – impacted not just by the public commentary regarding the organisation in recent months – but some staff interviewed also raised significant concerns about weaknesses in management systems and practices,” the report reads.