Both big business interests and small building companies have hailed the initiative which allows straightforward planning applications in the council area to be processed in just 21 working days.

The streamlined consultation pilot scheme - which began in January - is expected to be rolled out to other areas due to its initial success in the city, with Limavady Borough Council next in line.

One Derry businessman said described the move as “a major breakthrough in planning”.

“It frees up the Planning Service and the city council’s planning department to deal with major developments which are the life-blood of the town while allowing smaller matters to pass through quickly.”

And the initiative will also be a boost to the beleagured building industry in the city, creating much sought-after employment for private contractors as the backlog of applications for garages, extensions and other small developments are given the green light without undue delay.

“This will have a very big impact for small building operations and that’s great news the way things are in the industry at the minute,” one contractor told the ‘Journal’.

The scheme is one of a range of initiatives announced by Environment Minister Arlene Foster in November 2007, as part of the reform of the Planning System.

Colr Maurice Devenney, Chair of City Council’s Planning Committee, said the move had “clear benefits for applicants and the local development industry”.

Principal Planner Fiona McCandless from the Derry Planning Office added: “If the benefits of the new scheme are to be maximised, it is essential that applications are complete and contain all the information required to make a decision."

An evaluation will be carried out after six months to determine the scheme’s success after which discussions on the rollout to other councils will take place.