To ask the Minister for Infrastructure what steps are being taken to (i) process the backlog of planning applications; and (ii) ensure other statutory agencies involved in the planning process are working to schedule.

While responsibility for processing the majority of planning applications falls to councils, my Department has taken a number of steps to assist with the processing of planning applications as expeditiously as possible during the pandemic, such as: temporarily suspending the requirement for a pre-application community consultation public event; encouraging councils to review their schemes of delegation in order to reduce the number of applications which would be required to go before planning committees for decision; and working with the Department for Communities to bring in regulations enabling councils to hold planning committee meetings remotely in order to allow council business to proceed.

I am also aware that many councils have adopted pragmatic contingency arrangements to ensure planning applications continue to be processed during this period.

In relation to statutory consultees, I am aware that they are working hard to conduct business as usual, in terms of processing statutory planning consultations, albeit subject to the Covid restrictions. All key statutory consultees are available to participate in virtual or telephone meetings and address any planning queries. My Department is also working closely with statutory consultees through a cross governmental Planning Forum to implement recommendations from a recent report on the role of statutory consultees in the planning process. It is intended that this work will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the planning process particularly with regard to major and economically sensitive planning applications.