Planning Inspectorate Newsletter - Issue 7
STAKEHOLDERS
The Summer edition of the Newsletter gave feedback on Stakeholder meetings held during the summer at which the main topic for discussion was the Planning White Paper during the consultation stage.
Since then we have held a meeting with Legal Bodies (Law Society and the Planning and Environmental Bar Association) where the following matters were discussed:
- Planning White Paper - update on legislation and follow up to proposals
- Improving the Appeal Process – update on consultation process and initial comments
- Inspectorate Targets – report on the Inspectorate’s performance
- Inquiry Dates – Agreeing dates and suitable notice. Discussion on how practitioners could work with the Inspectorate in fixing dates for inquiries and still enable the Inspectorate to achieve Ministerial targets. The Inspectorate would look again at advisory material reinforcing message not to appeal until ready.
- Case Creep – discussion around the extent of changes to development proposals during the appeal stages which leads to decisions being made at appeal which ought properly to be made at the local level and concerns that the Inspectorate might be too restrictive in what is allowed in responding to reasons for refusal.
- Electronic Appeals System – working well but not as originally planned as it did not allow LPAs to deal with applications and appeals electronically. Local authority expert reviewing possibility of using the Planning Casework System to deliver a fast tracked householder appeals service as proposed in the Planning White Paper. Significant number of LPAs still unable to work electronically with the Inspectorate.
- Fees for Planning Appeals – issues discussed related to whether the appeal system as a dispute resolution service ought to be fully funded by the State (the view of the Law Society) or whether it was now appropriate for a proportion of the cost of that service to be paid by those seeking to benefit potentially from the outcome of an appeal. The ability to recover the fee through the Costs regime seems to be a relevant matter for those prepared to accept the principle of paying an appeal fee.
- Expert Evidence Endorsement – PEBA, the Law Society, the RTPI and RICS are seeking to agree a form of words for a declaration by expert witnesses prior to giving evidence which the Inspectorate would publish as part of improving the quality of evidence on which decisions are based.
- Conditions and Agreements in Planning Appeals – guidance being drafted by members of Law Society Planning and Environmental Law Committee on use of conditions in preference to legal agreements
- Examination of Local Development Documents –
Concerns raised by PEBA about:
- the potential absence of opportunity to examine evidence in detail on e.g. highway issues. The Inspectorate and PEBA to have a working seminar in which the examination process would be considered in more detail to see if any additional guidance needed for their members or for Inspectors and others interested in the process to ensure the rigour of the examination maintained.
- the ability of Inspectors to make changes to LDDs in their binding reports without having to reject a DPD on grounds of lack of soundness
The Inspectorate did not expect the proposed PWP amendments to the LDF system to be fundamentally affect the examination process but it should improve the quality of submitted DPDs.
- Consistent Time Limits in Written Representation Cases – Law Society concerned about the Inspectorate’s strict interpretation of the rules which they felt resulted too often in third party submissions being rejected as out of time. They recommended there should be scope for exceptional exceptions. The Inspectorate concerned that exceptions risked undermining the purpose to the rules but agreed to clarify the circumstances in which Inspectors might exercise their discretion to consider late evidence.
Forthcoming meetings include one with representatives of the National Parks Heads of Planning Group in November, one with London Stakeholders which we hope to arrange for January and one with Regional Bodies on 27 February 2008.
It would be useful to have the views of Stakeholders on whether they would find it useful to have a Stakeholder page on the Planning Inspectorate website and what they would like to see contained in it. The contact point for stakeholder meetings is Sheila Rice (Sheila.Rice@pins.gsi.gov.uk).
Sheila Rice
PA to Chief Executive
