Limavady planning applications showlargest drop around

Following a recent Sentinel report on the stark decline in the number of planning applications submitted to the Planning Offices responsible for Limavady, new government figures show that a similar decline has taken place throughout Northern Ireland.

It is in Limavady, however, that the decline in planning applications over the course of the past year has been most severe.

Out of all 26 local council areas in Northern Ireland, the largest decrease has been witnessed locally with over a third fewer plans submitted this year when compared to last year.

Figures published this week in the ‘Annual Development Management Bulletin’ reveal that the number of planning applications submitted across Northern Ireland has halved in five years, falling from just over 27,000 in 2006/07 to around 13,500 this year.

In comparison with last year, commercial applications are down throughout Northern Ireland by as much as 55 per cent while residential applications are down by almost a third.

Chairman of the Planning Services Committee at Limavady Borough Council Dermot Nicholl, have decried the lack of plans being submitted as a worrying sign for those employed in the construction industry.

The Sinn Féin Councillor commented that the decline in successful planning applications is severely affecting those trying to find work. He has also said that planning was “perhaps the most important committee in Council.”

He continued: “Nothing is more vital to the man and woman on the street than the roof over the family’s head. It’s the most expensive investment most families will ever make in their lifetime. This is the real stuff of politics.”

The one area where there has been an increase in the number of planning applications locally has been in the renewable energy sector. The number of renewable energy applications received throughout Northern Ireland has increased by 17 per cent from 696 in 2010/11.