Make key planning decisions 'democratically accountable' » Local Government » 24dash.com

The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) today urged the Government to ensure that democratic accountability and the statutory ‘right to be heard’ is at the core of proposed planning reforms.

The TCPA says it is pleased the Government has recognised its calls for a national spatial framework, particularly for infrastructure. It broadly welcomes proposals for a series of National Policy Statements (NPS).

TCPA Director of Policy and Projects, Robert Shaw said: “A key objective of the planning system must be to take forward and deliver the aspirations of the local, regional and national community for the improvement of towns, cities and countryside. "

"We therefore consider that, where appropriate, decisions on major infrastructure developments should be taken by elected Ministers and included in National Policy Statements, rather than by the proposed Independent Planning Commission which will not be directly democratically accountable.”

“Our concern will be mitigated if the major decisions, including those which are locationally specific, are taken by Ministers in preparation of the NPS’. However, such a system leaves the question of the purpose of the IPC when we already have a Planning Inquiry Commission operated by the Planning Inspectorate.”

The TCPA is disappointed that the statutory right to be heard in planning, enacted by Parliament in 2005, does not appear to feature in the Planning White Paper and believes this is an important democratic right which will matter significantly to those affected by developments.

The TCPA responses to the associated Planning White Paper consultation papers are summarised below:

1. Planning Performance Agreements (PPA): a new way to manage large-scale major planning applications.

The TCPA support the idea of the PPA. We believe there needs to be a transparent contractual statement about the level and quality of service that is being bought, and a clear identification of a named officer responsible for performance of that service. It should also include an explanation of procedures and remedies if the performance is not delivered. Central to a successful PPA is that local planning authorities and developers agree a project plan from the outset and agree to implement it. Another important issue is that the PPA should be a public document, available for inspection.

2. Planning Fees in England: proposals for change.

Decisions on fees for planning applications should be one for elected local authorities to decide and on which they should be permitted to pursue their own policies, subject to independent audit and balanced by an obligation to deliver an agreed level of service. Planning is under resourced and while the base funding, particularly of forward planning, should come from public funds the TCPA recognises that applicants should contribute towards the costs of processing applications. We believe that local authorities are capable of distinguishing the interest of generating income from that of making fair and reasonable planning decisions and notes that sanctions are available against any authority that was unduly influenced in its planning decisions as a result of fees or related income. However, current rates only represent a small percentage of the full cost of dealing with applications. Any increase in the scale of charges should be phased in over a two year time horizon.

3. Improving the Appeal Process in the Planning System – making it proportionate, customer focussed, efficient and well resourced.

The appeals system is highly regarded and the TCPA believes in the democratic accountability and professionalism which it exercises. The planning system is dependent on this component and could be damaged if part of it were to be diminished. The TCPA has serious concerns over some of the proposals to allow elected member review bodies to determine appeals. This would be an unnecessary diversion of attention and resources.

There is also a fundamental discourse between the effectiveness and efficiency of the appeals system ‘suffering’ from the volume of appeals being received and the effectiveness and efficiency of the national, regional and local economy ‘suffering’ from the need to make appeals. It must be made clear that people have a right to appeal and a right to be heard.

4. Changes to Permitted Development Consultation Paper 1: permitted development rights for householder microgeneration.

The TCPA believes that microgeneration is a fundamental part of sustainable development. As a member of the Government’s 2016 Taskforce on achieving zero carbon homes we welcome the majority of proposed changes to address the permitted development rights for householder microgeneration and strongly support the need for legislation to strengthen efforts.

TCPA was an early advocate of Design Codes as in some instances these can set design standards and imperatives, refocusing local authorities on management of developments in line with an overall framework for the area. Minor development could also benefit from a similar approach. The TCPA therefore welcomes the proposed amendments to the GPDO in this area but is concerned about some of the more general conditions drafted which will make implementation of the regulations less straightforward than they are currently.

5. Changes to Permitted Development Consultation Paper 2: permitted development rights for householders.

The TCPA has pressed for the regulation of minor householder development to be removed from the planning system to allow planners, working in authorities on behalf of local communities, to focus on bringing forward major development or redevelopment proposals in the most sustainable ways possible. The TCPA therefore welcomes the intentions behind this consultation, but believes some of the details of the approaches taken could lead to a system that is less easy to understand, more complex to operate, more time consuming and costly.

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