The Stormonmt Environment Minister Edwin Poots has welcomed the quarry industry's praise of Planning Service's performance in processing applications swiftly.

Regional Director of Quarry Products Association Northern Ireland (QPANI), Gordon Best, commented that an increasing number of its members’ planning applications were being processed in a matter of months and commended the work of the Planning Service in its efforts to speed up the planning process.

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Minister Poots said: "It is heartening to hear such positive words coming from the industry at a time when Planning Service has invested such energy into making its existing processes more efficient. Planning Service has been listening to the needs of the industry and introducing new processes, such as pre-applications discussions.

"I am confident that throughout Northern Ireland these improvements will continue to have a positive impact on the economy at every level, and that Planning Service staff will continue to work with industry to process applications to completion as quickly as possible and thereby support economic development."

A recent independent report highlighted that planning application processing times continued to improve in 2009/10.

(GK/BMcC)