Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 155: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a retail company (details supplied) has abandoned plans to build large outlets in the UK due to planning restrictions there and will instead opt for a larger number of smaller outlets within cities; if, in view of this and in view of the serious concerns raised regarding traffic volumes, he will revisit the decision to lift the cap for retail warehousing in the retail planning guidelines. [5316/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is aware from media reports that the company referred to has applied for planning permission for what it terms a smaller store of about 20,000 sq. m laid out over three levels in London, which the company says will be first in a series of such smaller stores in town centres across Britain. The company already operates a network of some 13 stores in the UK. Eight of these 13 stores are in excess of 20,000 sq. m and all of them are in excess of 15,000 sq. m, that is, more than double the size of the floor space cap of 6,000 sq. m which applied to retail warehouses in Ireland.

Planning policies and their implementation in Ireland must be responsive to the circumstances here rather than to the circumstances that may apply in another jurisdiction. Accordingly, I do not intend to review the decision to lift the cap on retail warehousing, subject to a number of conditions, in the retail planning guidelines.