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By Maol Muire Tynan
Dublin, Ireland, 9 December, 2001
The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) committee that oversaw negotiations between the organisation and the Department of the Environment over compensation for road development has split over acceptance of the deal worth hundreds of millions of pounds.
Members of the IFA's special negotiating group were on their way to a meeting in a Dublin hotel on the evening the agreement was made public -- November 28 -- when they first learned on a radio bulletin that a deal had already been struck.
It is understood that the meeting went ahead but, after several hours, they failed to reach agreement on the contents of the agreed document. A number of committee members strongly opposed the deal, arguing that it fell far short of the demands originally laid down by the IFA. The meeting was chaired by Francis Fanning, chairman of the IFA Farm Business Committee -- a body that last week endorsed the agreement.
IFA sources told The Sunday Business Post that dissatisfaction with the agreement centres on a number of issues, particularly in relation to compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) which allow local authorities to buy land against the owner's wishes. The IFA's original demands -- entitled Code for the Fair Acquisition of Land for Infrastructural Development -- said an ombudsman "must be appointed by government" for a three-year term to deal with CPOs. Under the deal, no such ombudsman will be appointed.
The IFA document also said acquiring authorities must be obliged to appoint an independent observer or liaison officer, acceptable to landowners, for each CPO scheme. The actual deal merely says that the IFA will be "consulted" in relation to the preparation of a code of practice aimed at ensuring better communication with the farmers affected by the orders.
The IFA also demanded that, where a local authority uses its compulsory powers to acquire land for "profitable use", the compensation paid must reflect the use to which that land is put. Property used for tolling booths or stations must be valued as development land and separate from the corridor of land used for the main roadway, according to the IFA paper.
However, IFA sources claim that the final deal with the department "disregards this". The agreement only provides that the National Roads Authority (NRA) and local authorities shall have "due regard" to the independent assessment of land values that can take place where a landowner fails to agree a settlement.
Copyright © Sunday Business Post 2001
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