THE GOVERNMENT HAS been called on by opposition parties to reverse its decision to bypass pre-legislative scrutiny of the Critical Infrastructure Bill.

The Critical Infrastructure Bill will create a legal obligation for State bodies to accelerate key projects.

This could incorporate statutory timelines for project delivery and require all parts of the system to prioritise these projects. 

It will allow the government to determine what constitutes critical infrastructure and create a fast-track pathway for significant projects that are in the national interest.

Other legal reforms contained within the plan include strengthening limitations on the use of quashing orders for minor issues in judicial reviews of planning decisions/

The Joint Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery today voted to agree with a request from Minister Jack Chambers for exemption from pre-legislative scrutiny of the Critical Infrastructure Bill.

Pre-legislative scrutiny was introduced to strengthen the capacity of the Oireachtas to ensure a high quality of legislation and to hold the Government to account.

Committee Cathaoirleach and Fianna Fáil TD Seán Fleming said the emphasis of the committee is to “achieve faster delivery which is much needed across Ireland”.

“Today’s decision is a key part of expediting delivery of this Bill through the Oireachtas,” said Fleming.

He said there will be a “full debate at the Committee stage of this legislation at a later date” and that Chambers has “committed to engaging constructively with Members during the passage of the Bill through the Houses”.

However, Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on Public Expenditure and Reform, Mairéad Farrell, said her party had “hoped to constructively engage on plans to speed up the delivery of critical infrastructure”. 

She added: “Given their poor track record on infrastructure, it is incredibly concerning that the Government is acting to circumvent important scrutiny on major legislation.”

Farrell said Chambers had asked for the Committee to waive pre-legislative scrutiny “based on a draft version of the general scheme of the bill”.

“The Minister confirmed that this draft is still under active discussion and subject to change,” said Farrell.

“The extent of the change is unclear. This is unacceptable.”

She said the Bill should “be made available to elected members, and subject to committee scrutiny, as it passes through the Oireachtas”.

“Pre-legislative scrutiny could have been completed within two weeks,” said Farrell.

“It would have strengthened the legislation and potentially averted judicial reviews further down the line.”

Farrell added that as the legislation passes further through the Oireachtas, Sinn Féin will “continue to call on the Government to deliver critical infrastructure that is desperately needed in a fair and fast way”.

Meanwhile, Labour’s housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan remarked that the pre-legislative scrutiny is an “essential stage”.

“It is critical that legislation underpinning key projects is robust, legally sound and fully scrutinised,” said Sheehan.

He called on Government to reverse its decision and “allow proper Oireachtas oversight to ensure the Bill is fit for purpose”.

“It is extraordinary that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are seeking to rush through legislation of this scale without proper scrutiny,” he added.

He said the Government’s approach is “reckless and short sighted” and added: “We simply cannot afford to get it wrong.”

Sheean said it is “disingenuous to suggest that proper oversight would delay progress when in reality it would strengthen the Bill and avoid costly mistakes later”.

He said many of the delays in delivering infrastructure “stem directly from Government failures, poor planning, weak oversight and legal challenges that could have been avoided”.

“Rushing legislation through the Oireachtas without scrutiny risks repeating those same mistakes.”

He also warned that if the Government could “open the door to legal challenges at EU level, including actions before the Court of Justice of the European Union”

“We need a Government that is serious about delivering infrastructure, not one that cuts corners and risks legal uncertainty,” said Sheehan.

“The Minister must immediately reverse this decision and allow for full pre-legislative scrutiny.

“Getting this Bill right is crucial not just for infrastructure delivery, but for public confidence in how decisions are made.”