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Mr. Dodds
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applications for planning for telecommunication masts have been approved in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) North Belfast in each year since 1997. [125843]
Angela Smith
It is not possible from planning service's records to distinguish between applications solely for telecommunications masts and applications for all other telecommunications equipment. The number of planning approvals for telecommunications equipment since 1997, in Northern Ireland and in North Belfast, is as follows:
| Applications approved in Northern Ireland since 1997 | |
| Year | Total number of telecommunications equipment |
| 1997–98 | 152 |
| 1998–99 | 96 |
| 1999–2000 | 169 |
| 2000–01 | 424 |
| 2001–02 | 324 |
| 2002–03 | 232 |
| 1 April 2003 to 30 June 2003 | 27 |
| Total | 1,099 |
| Applications approved in North Belfast since 1997: | |
| Year | Total number of telecommunications equipment |
| 1997–98 | 0 |
| 1998–99 | 3 |
| 1999–2000 | 5 |
| 2000–01 | 10 |
| 2001–02 | 11 |
| 2002–03 | 3 |
| 1 Apr 2003 to 30 June 2003 | 0 |
| Total | 32 |