The new board members, who will take up their positions from 2 September 2024, are Declan Moore, Liam McGree, Marie O’Connor, Mary Gurrie, Mary Henchy, Mary Rose McGovern, Mick Long and Paul Caprani.

Housing minister Darragh O’Brien said: “I am delighted to be in a position to appoint a number of new board members to An Bord Pleanála on a full term basis and to increase the maximum number of board members to 17.

“The Board has been through a challenging period in recent times but, with the help of a number of temporary board members, the Board is now in a position of stability.

“With the increase in resources, including an increase in sanctioned staffing levels to 313, the decision-making capacity of the Board has continued to steadily improve during 2024.

“With these eight full-term appointments now confirmed, I expect that trend of increased decision making will continue and that the primary focus of the board will be on clearing the backlog in the short to medium term.

“I wish all eight board members every success in their new role.”