Ireland has appallingly draconian rules, which the councils enforce extremely unevenly.

I did a self build there and it was like every meddling old church biddy in the county got to have a say on what kind of siding I could have, which kind of trees I could have, and whether my fenestrations were appropriate. I'm still annoyed they couldn't comprehend the value of eaves.

Although, you also learn that some rules are OK to break. You can park your car on any pavement in the country without fear of a fine.