Northern Ireland is at the mercy of feeble and farcical planning enforcement

The recent piece by Marcus Patton on planning shows how this should concern everyone who cares about the environment.
By John Mulholland
Published 18th Aug 2020, 09:22 BST
Aerial view of Northern Ireland, c/o GoogleMapsAerial view of Northern Ireland, c/o GoogleMaps
Aerial view of Northern Ireland, c/o GoogleMaps

(‘There is little point in having a planning system if it is toothless’, page 18, News Letter, August 18)

The statistics about planning are even worse than even a sceptic like me thought. The planning system in this country needs rubbed out and drawn over again. For a start, many of us were sceptical about councils taking over planning in 2015 because we knew refusal often offends.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

We have seen the result of some of their decisions! It is nonsense that over half of appeals by developers are granted, with those objecting not granted a second appeal.

Letter to the editorLetter to the editor
Letter to the editor

The other fact that is pointed out that 90% of applications are granted, which Mr Patton makes us aware of, is hard to fathom. When you see some of the houses being built in the countryside by the wealthy (probably some by developers for themselves), planning is a farce and the current law is not adequate to protect the countryside. The fact that even planners are overruled in their rulings tells you enough about the planning system in Northern Ireland. Is it now time for a robust planning system that does not just favour the developer but takes into account the objector with legitimate concerns?

Should there not also be an independent body to legislate on planning applications so that everyone is singing off the same hymn sheet?

This way there would be less scepticism about the decisions that the current authorities come to. Meanwhile the country, towns and villages are at the mercy of weak planning laws.

John Mulholland, Doagh

Related topics:Northern Ireland