Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the public inquiry was held into the planning application by Sainsbury's in Londonderry; when the planning appeal commission will issue its report; and if he will make a statement. [29902]
§ Mr. MossResponsibility for the subject in question has been delegated to the Planning Service under its chief executive, Mr. T. W. Stewart. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from T. W. Stewart to Mr. John D. Taylor, dated 17 May 1996:
Mr Moss has asked me to reply to your question about the Public Inquiry into the planning application by Sainsbury's in Londonderry.The Public Inquiry, which was held by the Planning Appeals Commission (PAC), ran from 20 February 1996 until 29 March 1996, and closing submissions were later made on 16 April 1996.You will appreciate that the report and recommendations of the Inquiry is a matter for the Chief Commissioner. However I understand from the PAC that their report is unlikely to be available before the summer.I can assure you that when the report is received, it will be carefully considered by the Department before a final decision is reached. The PAC report will of course be made available to the public once the Department's decision has issued.