COMMITTEE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

Committee Office, Room 247
Parliament Buildings
BELFAST
BT4 3XX

Tel No: 028 9052 1240
Fax No: 028 9052 1795

From: Alex McGarel
Clerk to the Committee for the Environment

Date: 4 December 2008

To: Una Downey

DECEMBER MONITORING ROUND

The Committee for the Environment has now received a briefing on the Department’s December Monitoring Submission. The Committee agreed to accept the submission as submitted to DFP and supports the Department’s request for a bid in relation to the shortfall in planning application fees. However it would like to see further detail of the planning application fee budget as soon as possible along with some indication of how recent planning policy decisions, like PPS 21, might impact upon this.

The Committee would also like to note its concern about the easements associated with delays in recruitment. In the current financial climate, and in light of previous discussions about the lack of resources for traffic enforcement, the Committee finds it disappointing and difficult to comprehend that the Department has been unable to recruit according to requirements. Based on the explanation for this received from the Department, the Committee will be drawing the attention of DFP to the problem and assumes the Department will also be liaising directly with DFP to seek solutions.

The Committee requests that in future monitoring submissions it would like to receive the outcome of all previous monitoring submissions within the budget year to allow for suitable comparison from quarter to quarter.

Alex McGarel