Mooreland and Owenvarragh Residents' Association Application for Judicial Review
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Humphreys J |
| Judgment Date | 31 May 2022 |
| Neutral Citation | [2022] NIQB 40 |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Northern Ireland) |
| Date | 31 May 2022 |
1
Neutral Citation No: [2022] NIQB 40
Judgment: approved by the Court for handing down
(subject to editorial corrections)*
Ref: HUM11864
Delivered: 31/05/2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
___________
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
(JUDICIAL REVIEW)
___________
IN THE MATTER OF AN APPLICATION BY MOORELAND AND
OWENVARRAGH RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATION FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW
___________
Ronan Lavery QC and Conan Fegan (instructed by Phoenix Law) for the Applicant
Paul McLaughlin QC and Philip McAteer (instructed by the Departmental Solicitor’s
Office) for the Respondent
Stewart Beattie QC and Philip McEvoy (instructed by Tughans) for the first Notice Party
Charles Banner QC (instructed by the Departmental Solicitor’s Office) for the second
Notice Party
___________
HUMPHREYS J
Introduction
[1] The proposed redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast by the Ulster GAA
has been the subject of much scrutiny and debate since the announcement in 2009
that the multi-sports facility at the Maze site would not be proceeding. Planning
permission was first granted in January 2014 but was ultimately quashed following a
successful application for judicial review brought by the same applicant in these
proceedings. This is an association made up of residents who live in close proximity
to Casement Park (‘MORA’). The judgment of Horner J dated 15 December 2014
[2014] NIQB 140 addresses the many issues which were in play at that time and I
gratefully adopt his analysis of the background to the application.
[2] A further application for planning permission was submitted in February
2017 and on 28 July 2021 the then Minister, Nichola Mallon, announced that her
Department for Infrastructure (‘DfI’) was granting the application subject to a series
of conditions and a Planning Agreement (‘the s76 Agreement’) arrived at pursuant
to section 76 of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Act 2011 (‘the 2011 Act’).
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[3] On 26 October 2021 MORA commenced these judicial review proceedings
seeking to quash the grant of planning permission on two discrete sets of grounds.
Firstly, it is argued that the Minister acted ultra vires by failing to refer the matter to
the Executive Committee for consideration. A connected attack on the Executive
Committee (Functions) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020 (‘the 2020 Act’) was not pursued.
The second set of grounds sought to impugn the permission on the basis of a series
of alleged errors in the planning process.
[4] The court had the benefit of detailed written and oral submissions from all
parties, including the Ulster Council of the GAA and the Department for
Communities (‘DfC’) who were joined as notice parties. I am grateful to all the legal
representatives for the focussed and considered manner in which the hearing was
conducted.
The Planning Permission
[5] The application sought permission for the demolition of all existing structures
on the site and the construction of a new 34,186 seater stadium with ancillary
accommodation such as hospitality, conference and community facilities. The
proposal expressly contemplated the use of the venue for up to three concerts per
year. The site itself is bounded by the Andersonstown Road, a main arterial route
into Belfast city centre, and on the other sides by Mooreland Park, Mooreland Drive,
Owenvarragh Park and Owenvarragh Gardens, which all comprise residential
properties.
[6] The application was ‘called-in’ by the DfI in March 2017 under section 29(1) of
the 2011 Act due to its regional significance. The proposed development represents
EIA development and therefore the Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment)
(Northern Ireland) Regulations 2015 (‘the 2015 Regulations’), which were then in
force, applied.
[7] Some 1305 letters and three petitions of objection were received alongside
1584 letters and one petition of support for the development. The body of objectors
made it clear, as MORA did in this judicial review, that they welcomed a suitably
sized, GAA oriented, development but they did not believe this proposal met those
criteria.
[8] An Environmental Statement (‘ES’)was submitted on 19 April 2017 and
Further Environmental Information (‘FEI’) was provided on four separate occasions
in May 2018, December 2018, July 2019 and February 2020. On each occasion the
application and the FEI were advertised and representations sought.
[9] The Case Officer tasked with assessing the application, Nola Jamieson,
identified a number of relevant material planning considerations to be taken into
account including government strategy, planning policies, residential amenity,
environmental considerations, fallback and safety. She produced a Development
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Weir (Eddie) and Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists Application for Judicial Review
...principles of independence, objectivity and reliability. [42] In Re Mooreland and Owenvarragh Residents Association’s Application [2022] NIQB 40, I criticised the attempts by the applicant to adduce evidence from a purported expert which stepped completely outside the permissible parameters......