Residents of Dundrum village in Co Tipperary have called on the Minister for Justice to act “immediately” to shut down what they say is now an “unauthorised” IPAS centre in Dundrum House Hotel after the High Court issued an order quashing a planning exemption granted to the hotel.
The tiny village with a population of circa 200 people found itself the focus of national attention last year after locals said they were “devastated” when a “small army of Gardaí”, including the Public Order Unit, were used to “push through” buses of migrants claiming asylum into the area despite widespread objections, and a local TD saying that locals felt they would be outnumbered.
Locals, including the Dundrum Says No group, had maintained a long-standing protest at the hotel which they said was unsuitable for the provision of services for up to 200 migrants claiming asylum, with issues such as compliance with planning regulations consistently raised.
In addition, the Dundrum Heritage Group had taken legal action seeking a Judicial Review in the High Court of the Section 5 Declaration granted by Tipperary County Council on 10 January 2025 for the Hotel. A Section 5 declaration means that a property is exempt from planning permission, and has been typically granted for asylum centres in the past 3 years to much controversy.
In this instance, “the declaration was issued to Brogan Capital Ventures Ltd. concerning a proposed material change of use at the historic Dundrum House Hotel,” the Heritage group noted when seeking the judicial review.
The group argued that planning permission was required for additional bedrooms, and that Dundrum House is a protected structure which they said should have been subject to a full planning application rather than a Section 5 process.
They also raised environmental concerns, arguing that the site was not planning compliant due to an unauthorized wastewater treatment system.
In June, Tipperary County Council conceded that the decision to grant the planning exemption facilitating the asylum centre was based on flawed environmental information regarding the wastewater treatment system.
And yesterday, the High Court quashed the Section 5 planning exemption granted by Tipperary County Council in regard to Dundrum House Hotel, a decision welcomed by local groups and politicians.
Dundrum Heritage Group said that “both Tipperary County Council and Brogan Capital Ventures conceded the case, acknowledging the site is not planning compliant due to an unauthorized wastewater treatment system”.
They said: “This is not just about planning technicalities; it is about the rule of law and the protection of our heritage,” adding that “the developers attempted to use a Section 5 exemption for works on a Protected Structure. This should have required full planning scrutiny.”
They also said that the current strategy had failed and “been disastrous for Dundrum and wider Tipperary area from a socio-economic including tourism perspective. The hotel is closed, the golf course, gym, swimming pool, restaurant and bar are all shut, and 48 local jobs have recently been lost” adding that the 300-year-old Manor House is a protected structure, and the local community “is locked out of its own amenities”.
COUNTY COUNCIL URGED TO ISSUE ENFORCEMENT NOTICES
They urged that the Department of Justice “terminate the contract immediately” and called on Tipperary Co Council to issue enforcement notices “immediately” based on the High Court decision, saying that the liquidators “must sell the property to an operator who will restore it as a functioning hotel and amenity”.
Independent TD, Mattie McGrath, said: “This ruling confirms what local communities have been saying for months: the planning process was flawed, and the certificate should never have been issued. The Government cannot ignore the court’s findings. Continuing with this contract would be a gross insult to the people of Dundrum and surrounding areas.”
“In light of this judgment, I am calling for the immediate rescinding of the Government’s IPAS contract for Dundrum House Hotel, as has already happened in other areas where planning compliance could not be guaranteed. Continuing with this arrangement would be a blatant disregard for the court’s findings and for the rights of local residents,” he said.
“This situation highlights a deeper problem: the lack of transparency and accountability in how these contracts are awarded and managed. Communities deserve better than decisions made behind closed doors, without proper planning safeguards,” he added. “It is time to end the use of Dundrum House Hotel for IPAS accommodation and ensure that any future arrangements respect planning law, environmental standards, and the legitimate concerns of local people. The Government must act now, cancel the contract, restore confidence in the planning system, and put accountability at the heart of decision-making.”
Fiona Kennedy of Dundrum Says No said that the High Court order was a “huge win” for the people of Dundrum and that the Minister “needed to take action to close the Dundrum IPAS centre now”.
“While we celebrate the news from the High Court that the Section 5 Planning Exemption has officially been quashed and IPAS in Dundrum does not have planning, we now have another Section 5 application that is currently before An Coimisiún Pleanála to contend with,” she said.
“The IPAS centre should have been closed immediately after the County Council conceded in June that the Section 5 exemption should not have been granted, yet that didn’t happen,” she said.
“It is our opinion that Tipperary County Council should have immediately rejected this new application given that nothing has changed in Dundrum since the first application was made and the site is still not planning compliant. While their website states a decision should be made by March 2026, the reality is a decision from An Coimisiún Pleanála could take up to 2 years,” she said.
She said it was “absolutely unacceptable that an unauthorised centre would continue to operate and be in receipt of a lucrative government contract” given the High Court order.
“Why did Tipperary County Council not immediately reject the new Section 5 application, and why did they pass the decision-making buck onto An Coimisiún Pleanála?” she asked. “The original exemption should never have been granted.”
Ms Kennedy echoed the call for “the immediate closure of Dundrum IPAS Centre” and said that every effort should now be “made to secure a buyer who will return the hotel, golf, gym and bar to its previous function.”
“We are left in the situation where we are still seeing taxis arriving at Dundrum House all the time. Where is the oversight in all of this. Who are the companies making a fortune from this? It has been appalling and completely disrespectful to the local community.”
“One thing has been very clear, the local people are united in opposition to this IPAS centre being imposed on the village,” she said, adding that people had felt intimidated by the ugly name-calling and what she said were astro-turf groups “including some politicians who made such poisonous criticisms of the locals who had entirely valid and legitimate concerns”.
“People really had to dig deep into courage to speak out at a time when the media were calling everyone racist for having perfectly legitimate concerns,” she said.
Ms Kennedy was previously sharply critical of much of the national media who she said “have very serious questions to answer” in relation to how the community’s oppositon to the IPAS centre was covered.
“They created a climate a fear, and made people afraid to speak up in case they were described as “racists”,” she said. “So many people in addition to those who kept up the protest 24/7 for more than a year agreed with us, but they felt afraid to say it. They were bullied into silence by the media.”
“The media were scandalous, they were a disgrace,” she said. “They are meant to probe these issues but instead they just wanted a totally false narrative to take hold about the supposed “rise of the far right” when communities were actually upset and had real concerns”.
Local councillor, Liam Browne, also raised queries regarding the new Section 5 application. “As an elected member of Tipperary County Council, I wish to express my concern and disappointment regarding the Council’s decision to refer the recent Section 5 planning request concerning Dundrum House Hotel to An Coimisiún Pleanála,” he said.
“This request, submitted on 6th October 2025 by an agent acting on behalf of Utmasta Limited, seeks a determination on whether the proposed change of use of several buildings on the site constitutes development, and if so, whether it is exempted development under planning legislation.
“I believe this matter should have been dealt with internally by Tipperary County Council, as is standard practice. The referral to An Coimisiún Pleanála raises serious questions about transparency and consistency in how planning matters are handled, particularly given that a similar Section 5 request was previously granted by the Council, only to be later ceded when unauthorised developments on the site came to light.
“The public and elected representatives deserve clarity on why this decision was escalated externally, especially in light of the planning history associated with this site.”
Last year, Cllr Browne said that the use of large numbers of Gardaí “for people who have never caused any trouble in their lives” – and involving the public order unit to threaten ordinary, decent people and make it clear to the locals in Dundrum that they would be “beaten off the road” – amounted to the “slow destruction of democracy”.