An Bord Pleanala chairman takes early retirement amid ongoing probes

Ireland’s embattled planning appeals body faced further upheaval on Thursday, after its chairman Dave Walsh announced that he is to take early retirement.

In a statement Mr Walsh said he was making the decision for “personal and family reasons” and that it was the right time for him to “embark on the next chapter of my life”.

It comes as An Bord Pleanala faces several investigations into allegations of conflict of interest at the organisation.

Earlier this year, Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien referred an independent report he had commissioned into decisions at An Bord Pleanala to the director of public prosecutions, the Gardai and the Standards in Public Office.

In July, Paul Hyde resigned as deputy chairman of the planning appeals body.

There has been intense scrutiny of the organisation since the allegations of conflict of interest emerged.

Last week, in the wake of further media reports, An Bord Pleanala said that Mr Walsh had commissioned a forensic investigation into whether an internal report had been released by someone from within the organisation.

The statement said “any unauthorised release of the document from within the organisation” had been ruled out.

Announcing his retirement, Mr Walsh acknowledged the “difficult decision that he had come to” to leave the organisation during “very difficult circumstances”.

“It has been a privilege to lead An Bord Pleanala over the last four years, and after 27 years of public service, I believe now is the right time for me to embark on the next chapter of my life and to focus on other priorities,” Mr Walsh said.

“While it is of course difficult to leave such an organisation, I am sure that the staff and board will continue to strive for the highest public service standards that they have set for themselves and for the organisation.

“I am confident that the actions being taken by the board, supported by the department and the Office of the Planning Regulator, will help to quickly restore the board’s reputation and underpin its central role in the planning process.

“I would also like to thank the minister and department for their continued support to me and An Bord Pleanala over the last few years, and I am confident they will continue this support to those tasked with leading the organisation over the coming years.”

Speaking to the PA news agency, Social Democrat co-leader Catherine Murphy said that she was not surprised at the latest development.

“I think it demonstrates an absence of leadership in An Bord Pleanala – when the planning regulator issued a very hard-hitting report, the comment from the board and from Mr Walsh was a bit astonishing.”

Last month, An Bord Pleanala responded to a report by the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR), and claimed the report contained “no specific criticisms of the Board’s practices, but rather is aimed at further strengthening the robustness and documentation of its systems and procedures”.

Ms Murphy said there clearly were issues raised within the report, which recommended that a governance, ethics and compliance unit be established, as well as a new code of conduct.

“We had Mr Walsh and An Bord Pleanala into the Public Accounts Committee some months ago after this initial controversy blew up, and I remember making the point, what systems were in place to make sure that things like files weren’t given to people in close proximity to where they live,” she said.

“And he said ‘you had to trust your colleagues’, which spoke volumes to me about the absence of systems, and I would have thought the report that came from the Office of the Planning Regulator screamed that there was a need for just that, that you would have systems in place.”

A second report from the OPR review into An Bord Pleanala is due at the end of November.

Ms Murphy said that she believes there now may be an opportunity to win back trust if the correct action is taken.

“An Bord Pleanala is incredibly important, but it is absolutely essential that it regains some credibility and some trust.

“That won’t happen unless there is deliberate actions, and where there’s real sign of leadership.

“I think there’s an opportunity to do something in reforming now but those reforms have to be the correct reforms,” she said.