Friday 5 December 2008

Quick Planning approvals

Under fire, Environment Minister, Sammy Wilson brought good news to those wilting under the wait for planning approvals, in Northern Ireland’s tortuous system.
Having cleared the issue of PPS14/21 up amid a flurry of interviews and staunch ripostes Mr Wilson has now opened up a pilot scheme to cut down on waits for planning approval for non-contentious applications.

This means that the bewildering delays faced by applications for, for example, temporary school classrooms or changes to a shop front display, can now be approved on average in between 16-20 days compared to the previous average of almost three months.

The scheme operates on the simple premise that if there are no objections to an application then it does not require to be tabled at a council meeting.

Good news for householders looking to improve rather than move, but there could be a sting in the tail…it will mean councillors will have more time on their hands to have a bun-fight over contentious applications. More grief for PPS21 applicants then?

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