Government's Planning Bill: "Bad for Democracy and Environment in Wales"

Friends of the Earth Cymru has described the Government's announcement on the future of the Planning system in England and Wales as "jumbled and confusing" [1]. The group has also expressed its frustration that the future of the planning system in Wales has been tied so closely to the Treasury-led Whitehall review.

Friends of the Earth Cymru had hoped that Assembly Planning Minister, Sue Essex, would use the opportunity of the Assembly's own planning review to create distinctive policies. These could have met the need to boost public confidence in the Planning System and give people in Wales real rights to participate in the system. Sue Essex's announcement on Planning was made last week with details of the Bill not published until today.

The group complains that the Bill is jumbled, confusing and gives little hope of gaining the public support the planning system so badly needs.

Friends of the Earth Cymru has welcomed the commitment to give the Wales Spatial Plan legal status and proposals to stop developers exploiting the system by making repeated similar applications.

However, the group has condemned plans to introduce "Business Planning Zones" with eased planning procedures "if the Assembly Government considers it appropriate". The campaigners have also attacked Sue Essex's refusal to consider giving individuals, community groups and businesses (so called 'third parties') a real right of appeal against certain types of development [2].

Dr Hugh Ellis, Friends of the Earth's Planning Adviser commented:

"Reforming the planning system was a golden opportunity to create a fair and efficient framework for all participants. But, these confusing Treasury-led proposals are bad for democracy and bad for the environment."

Julian Rosser, Head of Campaigns at Friends of the Earth Cymru added:

"Sue Essex had a real opportunity to bring some real justice and fairness to the planning system in Wales. It is a great pity that she has blown that opportunity and refused to even address the fact that individuals have no meaningful right of appeal with the system.

"The planning system lacks public confidence. This could have been tackled by giving people real rights in the system. There don't appear to be any meaningful proposals in the Bill which would achieve that."

"Wales should be demanding it's own legislation, not being tagged onto a rushed and ill-considered proposal for England that won't deliver sustainable development or local democracy."

Notes

[1] The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill was published today

[2] See the Friends of the Earth Cymru briefing paper "Planning Justice for Wales (PDF† format 138K)"

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