AQW 15843/22-27

Mr Peter McReynolds
Alliance Party
East Belfast

Tabled Date: 27/09/2024
Answered On Date: 14/10/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Infrastructure to detail any action he is taking to strengthen the enforcement measures used to control unauthorised developments.

Answer:

The Planning Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 introduced new enforcement powers for councils and also increased several levels of fines with regards to suspected breaches of planning control. Following consideration of the available evidence, the report on the Review of the Implementation of the Planning Act (NI) 2011 (RIPA) made numerous recommendations/actions covering key elements of the planning system. In respect of enforcement my Department was not persuaded of the need to change the approaches to planning enforcement and this position has not changed.