The Planning Bill - A perspective from Friends of the Earth

Environmental Law and Management

Volumn 20, Issue 5, 2008, Pages 275-281

  Michaels, Phil ^a  

^a Friends of the Earth ^*

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ACCOUNTABILITY; CLIMATE CHANGE; CONFERENCE PROCEEDING; LOCAL PARTICIPATION; PLANNING SYSTEM;

EID: 57249084871     PISSN: 10676058     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Conference Paper

References (44)

1. Planning Bill 2000 - 08 introduced in the House of Commons on 27 November 2007 http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2007-08/planning.html, HL Bill 69 0708.
2. UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention) (25 June 1998). http://www.unece.org/env/pp/documents/ cep43e.pdf.
3. Hansard HC Deb col 25 (10 December 2007).
4. See accompanying paper by David Elvin QC pp 261-274.
5. Planning Bill (n 1) cl 5.
6. ibid cl 5(5)(d) 'the policy set out in a national policy statement may in particular identify one or more locations as suitable (or potentially suitable) or unsuitable for a specified description of development'. Undersub-para (b) it can set out criteria for deciding whether locations are suitable.
7. ibid cl 29: Development consent is required for development to the extent that the development forms part of a nationally significant infrastructure project.
8. ibid cl 31 (1 )(a) for a full list.
9. ibid cl 102 provides that the Secretary of State may recover an application for her own determination where there has beena significant change in the basis for the policy.
10. ibid cl 97 sets out the circumstances in which the IPC may determine a planning application other than in accordance with the NPS for example, cl 97(4) where deciding the application in accordance with the NPS would lead to the UK being in breach of its international obligations;
11. or cl 97(4) where such a determination would be unlawful by virtue of any enactment;
12. or cl 97(7) where the IPC 'is satisfied that the adverse impact of the proposed development would outweigh its benefits'.
13. ibid cl 92: the IPC must complete its examination within six months of the preliminary meeting.
14. ibid cl 100. The application must be decided within three months of the six-month period for concluding the examination of the application.
15. ibid cl 109 (4): sets out a non-exhaustive list of provisions that may be included in an order granting development consent.
16. http://www.dft.gov.uk/foi/responses/2005/jan/terminalfive/ planninginspectoratejournalh 2291.
17. ibid p 10. The inquiry opened in May 1995.
18. Communities and Local Government 'Planning for a Sustainable Future' White Paper; published 21 May 2007 CM 7120 para 2.8 table p 32.
19. K Lindblom QC, R Honey 'Planning for a New Generation of Power Stations' [2007] JPL 843 at 847.
20. Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.
21. ibid para 4.
22. ODPM Circular 07/2005 para 5.
23. ibid actively promotes the use of round-table sessions, statements of common ground and use of outline statements.
24. Communities and Local Government 'Planning Policy Statement 1: Delivering Sustainable Development' (31 December 2005);
25. Supplement 'Planning and Climate Change (17 December2007) http:// www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/ppsclimatechange.
26. Hansard HC Deb col 579 (2 June 2008).
27. Aarhus Convention (n 1) Recital.
28. ibid art 6: the applicable paras require that participation be given adequate time frames, be carried out at a time when all options are open, and that the results of such participation be taken into account in the decision making process.
29. Note 1 cl 7(2).
30. ibid cl 97.
31. Whilst PCPA 2004 s 8 provides that a member of the public does not have a right to be heard in the preparation of an RSS, s 20(6) explicitly provides that members of the public do have a right to appear before and be heard by the inspector.
32. Note 1 cl 12.
33. ibid cl 40.
34. ibid cl 85 (1).
35. ibid cl 86 (1).
36. ibid cl 87.
37. Such right is found in the constitutions and rules of procedure of many local authorities.
38. ibid.
39. Town and Country Planning Act 1990 JCPA 1990) (as introduced by PCPA 2004) and the Town and Country Planning (Major Infrastructure Projects Inquiries Procedure) England Rules 2005 (the 2005 Rules) SI 2005/2115.
40. The Secretary of State will be able to 'call-in' for her own determination applications either where it would be in the interests of defence or national security or where there has been an unanticipated change in circumstances since the publication of the relevant NPS which would result in a materially different policy, and where there is an urgent need in the national interest for the application to be decided before the NPS is reviewed (cl 102).
41. Note 1 cl 109(6).
42. Private and hybrid bills sometimes modify existing legislation. Transport and Works Orders can also modify legislation (s 5(3) Transport and Works Act 1992) but those powers are exercised only by the Secretary of State.
43. R (on the application of Alconbury Developments Ltd) v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions and Others [2001] UKHL 23.
44. Research Paper on the Planning Bill 06.12.07 http:// services.parliament.uk/bills/2007-08/planning.html; rpo7-084-2pdf.