appeals
Appeals meltdown

The sudden but predicted meltdown of the appeals system (see our story below) throws more power back onto local planning authorities, as Hammersmith chief planning officer Nigel Pallace pointed out at the recent Forum meeting (see LPDF minutes).

It has oft been observed that part of the power of authorities over applicants is the threat of delay, and the - until recently - effective option of choosing the alternative jurisdiction provided by a planning inspector has afforded a necessary counterbalancing threat.

This, for many years, was a poor bluff given how long an appeal would take. We seem to have reverted, the Inspectorate warning current appellants just for written appeals that, despite a 9 to 12 week target for the site inspection, this is now likely to be 45 to 50 weeks off! Their decision target was 80 per cent within 16 weeks for such appeals and these will now take more than a year.

The Government in September announced a relaxation from 80 to 50 per cent on the Inspectorate's targets, since Government action had made them impossible to attain (not quite how they put it) but the emergency measures suggested by the ACA must be given fullest consideration for urgent action.