449. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his attention has been drawn to concerns that local authority planning policies relating to residential driveways and the protection of mature trees may, in some cases, create unintended barriers to the installation of domestic electric vehicle charging infrastructure; whether consideration has been given to issuing national planning guidance to local authorities on achieving an appropriate balance between protecting existing trees and facilitating home EV charging where feasible; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51134/26]

While the Planning and Development Act 2024 (Act of 2024) was enacted in October 2024, it is in the process of being commenced on a phased basis. As such, for the purposes of decisions on planning applications, the provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (Act of 2000), and associated Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended (Regulations of 2001) remain in force until the relevant sections of the Act of 2024 are commenced and the corresponding sections of the Act of 2000 are repealed.

Currently, EV charging points are exempt from the need for planning permission under Classes 29A and Class 29B of Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Regulations of 2001. Class 29A provides for the construction of a charging point for electric vehicles. It is open to a property owner to make use of planning exemptions subject to the requirement to adhere to any conditions imposed within the Regulations.

Under Section 13 (10) of the Roads Act, 1993, it is illegal to excavate a public road without lawful consent. Where housing is along a public road a road opening licence is required to excavate a section of public road, such as a carriageway, footway and associated landscaped area, to facilitate a driveway entrance to a house. A road opening licence can be obtained from the relevant roads authority (such as the city or county council). Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993, as amended, falls under the responsibility of the Minister for Transport.