Santa Claus is coming to town on November 15 — provided he isn’t rerouted!

Santa — who will be touring the world on Christmas Eve night — has had to apply for permission from the Parades Commission to travel the few hundred yards from the City Hall to Castle Court in Belfast where he will be delighting children from across the city in the run-up to the festive season.

Yip, there’s a Santa clause in there...

Deer, deer! No wonder the old boy is seeing red. And who nose how Rudolph is feeling about it. It’s probably driving him up the North Pole.

Santa has, the Belfast Telegraph has learned, completed his One-Bar-Eleven Form asking if he and his deer friends can take the outward route from the City Hall to castle Court via Donegall Place and Royal Avenue.

There are, however, calls that the Commission should be given the sack for including a Santa clause in the legislation. For example, David Jones of Drumcree fame — who has filled in as many One-Bar-Elevens as the children of Ulster have sent letters to Santa — said: “I’m not really surprised. When you consider that applications have to be sent in for circus elephants parading in Bangor.”

Former Belfast Lord Mayor Jim Rodgers added: “All this nonsense is a waste of time and resources. Westminster passed the legislation and it’s up to the Secretary of State to show a bit of common sense and change it.”

A spokesman for the Parades Commission said they were concentrating on Sunday’s parade of homecoming soldiers in Belfast and the counter protests, adding: “We don’t have time for this sort of levity at the moment.”

Meanwhile, there is no mention of Santa’s application for a return parade, and one can only assume that Rudolph, Donna, Blitzen and all the rest of the reindeer will be flying off on Christmas Eve night for that world tour and their feet won’t be touching the ground.

No need for an application form as they reach for the stars — a One-Bar-Eleven Heaven!