Shadow Local Government Minister and North Wales MS, Mark Isherwood, has raised complaints regarding approved developments on green-barrier land and open spaces in Flintshire in the Welsh Parliament this week and challenged the Minister for Housing and Local Government over what measures she can put in place to ensure that open-spaces and defined green-barriers are conserved.
Mr Isherwood raised the matter when speaking in Wednesday’s virtual Plenary Meeting.
He also highlighted concern that as a result of the Coronavirus Act, which introduced flexibilities for Councils to carry out their democratic and governance arrangements differently and proportionately given the challenges faced, Councils without LDPs, such as Flintshire, could “pursue a challenging use of the emergency procedures to get them approved”.
Speaking via ‘Zoom’ from his home in North Wales, he said:
“Last Sunday all Members received an e-mail from a Flintshire resident whose complaint against Flintshire Country Council regarding a Development in Flintshire had been upheld by the Ombudsman for Wales, and who stated “There needs to be an inquiry into the approval of this Development with the officers involved being held to account.”
“I have received several similar complaints regarding approved Developments in Flintshire.
“How do you therefore respond to another Flintshire resident, who asked: "County Hall planning departments often struggle to defend existing green-barrier demarcations when faced with demands from large-scale speculative estate developers for release of, yet more, swathes of easy-to-build private houses on our precious fields and countryside.
“As we stand to lose yet more of our finite ‘green-barrier’ land, what measures can the Minister put in place that will urgently mandate that Welsh Planning Policy will affirm robust conservation of all existing open-spaces and defined green-barriers?”
The Minister replied: “I'm not going to comment on the specific issue, because we know that it's the subject of a series of complaints, and so on. But, in terms of the more general remarks around protecting green space and so on, we're working with authorities across Wales, both to get their planning departments up and running and to ensure that we do a proper audit of skills across Wales.
Mr Isherwood added:
“In November 2017 and May 2019 you wrote to Flintshire Council, stating: “It is extremely disappointing that your authority has submitted a further request to extend the time taken to prepare your Local Development Plan, especially in the light of previous assurances. This is particularly pertinent as your Authority is continuing to suffer the pressure of speculative planning applications and appeals due to a lack of an adopted Development Plan. The longer that situation persists will be to the greater detriment to local communities and the reputation of the planning system.”
“The Coronavirus Act introduced flexibilities for councils to carry out their democratic and governance arrangements differently and proportionately given the challenges faced – but this was not intended to diminish the voice of communities or weaken democratic accountability and representation.
“How, therefore, will you ensure that Councils without LDPs do not pursue a challenging use of the emergency procedures to get them approved?”
The Minister told Mr Isherwood that the Welsh Government has been working with local councils across Wales, both with LDPs and without, “more particularly those who are in the formative phases of the LDP, to ensure that they were first of all able to function at all—and that goes for all planning authorities across Wales”.
Mr Isherwood also questioned the Minister over new regulations which came into force in Wales last month in respect of pre-application consultation for Developments of National Significance during this pandemic.
He said:
“Although these claimed to introduce safeguards to guarantee that the revised process is as inclusive as possible, concern was raised with me that they allow applicants to conduct a consultation virtually – and that, given both the potential impact of Developments of National Significance on communities and the need for the public to understand the technical aspects of these, virtual consultations do not constitute a meaningful consultation and breach the Well Being of Future Generations Act.
“How, therefore, do you respond to concern that applicants who had previously delayed physical consultations are now announcing ‘virtual’ remote consultations, avoiding the need for face-to-face interaction, and that this discriminates against older and disabled people who do not have access to the internet or who may not be confident on the phone?”
The Minister agreed it is “not a perfect system”, but said something needed to be in place “in order to be able to ensure that these things were still happening, and that they weren't all completely on stop”.