Findings
Two main concerns arise from the survey and these are:
- The inconsistency and spread of charges across local authorities.
- The excessive charges levied by a large number of local authorities, despite the guidance issued by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in August 2005.
The survey results for 2007 would indicate that the Department's Circular Letter PD 4/05 of August 2005 has had little or no impact on the level of charges for photocopying planning documents across the local authorities surveyed, as the following table illustrates:
| Response of Local authorities | Comparative percentages |
|---|
| Increased or made no change to charges of 25 cents and over per A4 page | 53% |
| Reduced charges but still exceed 25 cents per A4 page | 7% |
| Reduced charges to less than 25 cent per A4 page | 10% |
| Retained charges at less than 25 cent per A4 page | 30% |
Based on the survey results, the above figures indicate that 60% of all local authorities may be levying charges for photocopying planning documents above a level that I consider would be difficult to justify.
I call on those local authorities who are overcharging to now review their charges, by reference to the Circular issued by the Department in August 2005 and revise their charges, as others have done. Should this not happen, I may have no option but to investigate the matter further. While I appreciate the independence and autonomy of individual local authorities, I have to take into account that the planning process is a national one, where procedures are generally uniform across all local authorities. In passing, I should also mention that the Freedom of Information Acts 1997 to 2003, apply nationally across all local authorities and other public bodies and, as already stated, provide, by Regulation, for a standard photocopying charge. Given that the national planning process, by law, requires that planning files be made available to the public for a given period, there would not appear to be a justifiable reason for imposing charges greater than the cost of making a copy of planning documents. Should I find it necessary in the future to investigate charges for photocopying planning documents in a particular local authority as a test case, and should I find that its charges cannot be justified, I will be most critical of that local authority, not only for its overcharging but also for its failure to take on board the Department's Circular Letter PD 4/05 and the evidence and comments contained in this Report.