Written question asked by Martin Linton (Labour) on Monday, 2 July 2007, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 4 July 2007. It was answered by Iain Wright (Labour) on Tuesday, 10 July 2007 on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Shops: Planning Permission

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to require planning permission for the merger of ground floor shop units.

Answer: Whether planning permission is required for the merger of shop units depends on what work is proposed to be carried out. Unless a change of use is involved, planning permission will not usually be required if the merger involves only internal works. However, where works would affect the external appearance of a building, planning permission is likely to be required. Where planning permission is needed, local planning authorities can already prevent the merger of shop units through imposing planning conditions in the context of their planning strategy for their town centres. ““Planning Policy Statement 6: Planning for town centres”” (PPS6) gives further advice on the effective use of planning conditions to ensure that the character of a development cannot subsequently be changed to create a form of development that a local authority would originally have refused.We have no plans to change the current requirements.

Secondary information