Dear Department for Communities (Northern Ireland),

I would like to make the following request under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act, 2000.

In a recent landmark judgement over a Mallusk Incinerator, the Court of Appeal ruled that "any decision which as a matter of convention or otherwise would normally go before the minister for approval lies beyond the competence of a senior civil servant in the absence of a minister."

It further stated that "cross cutting" decisions involving more than one department were beyond the remit of civil servants.

In light of this, I would like to know

1) How many outstanding decisions or "cross-cutting" decisions does your department have that require ministerial approval?

2) Where possible, can you further specify the precise details of any such decisions and what they are regarding.

Yours faithfully,

Matthew Thompson