The Housing Department has come under pressure to scrap its fast track planning scheme following a recent report.

A story in the Sunday Business Post highlighted that no building has started on 47 of the 64 housing developments granted fast track planning permission.

Concerns were also raised over how a small number of developers had such a disproportionate influence on planning policy.

Sinn Féin representative Eoin Ó Broin TD reiterated his party's stance on the scheme.

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"The academic paper by UCD referenced in the media report confirms that this fast track planning legislation was not about speeding up the delivery of housing but by-passing the democratically agreed planning policies of Local Authorities," he said.

Thankfully this legislation has a sun set clause and is due to expire at the end of the year. The Minister for Housing is currently conduction a review into the legislation with a view to extending it.

"Our view is that this would be a serious mistake and in our submission to the Department of Housing on this we put forward alternative proposals.

"Sinn Féin is of the view that statutory time frame should be put in place for pre-planning and requests for further information and An Bord Pleanala appeals would significantly shorten the turnaround time for planning decisions.

"If these changes were made the developer led fast track planning proposal would be redundant."

(CM/JG)