False objection made to planning application in the name of Kildare councillor

A letter objection to a planning permission request as falsely made in the name of a councillor.

Cllr Brendan Weld, a former cathaoirleach of Kildare County Council, said a letter of objection was made to the council’s planning section - but it was immediately apparent that he was not the author.

The councillor added his voice to call for tighter rules around how objections to planning applications are made.

Cllr Ivan Keatley told a KCC meeting that observations on planning applications should not be accepted  unless a verified form of personal identification is provided when it’s being submitted.

He added that while legislation is one the way which is likely to resolve this, several parties have made “spurious and vexatious claims” - including one made in the name of Liam Lawlor.

He said some submissions are made without a name or address and this is “wholly unfair.”

He added: “Whether it’s a one off house or anything else objections can be made by people not giving personal details.”

In a report, KCC official Alan Dunney said that there is no requirement to look for any personal identification when receiving submissions and these can be submitted by hand, by post or electronically.

He also said that any submissions and observations are acknowledged through registered post to the address of the submitter and in the past this has served as a safety net where invalid submissions have been weeded out of the process.

Currently legislation permits any person or body, on payment of the prescribed fee, to make a submission or observation in writing to a planning authority in relation to a planning application within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application.

Any submission or observation received shall state the name of the person or body making the submission or observation, and indicate the address to which any correspondence relating to the application should be sent.

In 2017 the Irish Independent reported that a Galway man said that he and his wife have endured "a planning nightmare" over a 'mystery objector' blocking their plans for their dream home near the shores of Lough Corrib.

Richard Barrett was speaking after an An Bord Pleanala oral hearing in Oughterard, Co Galway, that was held to establish as to whether the objector, Harry Smyth, is who he or she says they are.

However, there was no show at the hearing yesterday from Harry Smyth and instead the mystery objector sent a Dublin based planning consultant to represent them.

At the outset, board inspector Paul Caprani told the hearing “we don’t even know if Harry Smyth is a man or a woman. The validity of the appeal by Harry Smyth is under question and I want to know why Harry Smyth is not here with a copy of her passport, driver’s licence with the name Harry Smyth on it and proof that she lives at the address given. Why the appellant is not here today with those details is beyond me."

Mr Caprani said that in his 20 years with An Bord Pleanala he had never held an oral hearing into a one-off home application and it is his belief that the reason the board has decided to hold the oral hearing is to establish the bona fides of Harry Smyth.

He said that questions around the identity of Harry Smyth are “crucial” to the board considering whether the appeal can be considered valid or not.

The mechanical engineer said: “It is a stressful situation not knowing if we are going to be able to build in the community that we grew up in. The stress is unbelievable and the financial cost of this is significant.”

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