North Yorkshire Council has temporarily cancelled its planning committee meetings while it examines the impact of controversial new Government rules which councillors fear will leave local communities with less say over developments.
The authority has confirmed meetings have been cancelled to ensure it complies with the National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Functions in England, which came into effect on October 31.
The changes restrict which planning applications can be considered by elected councillors with more decisions instead being made by council planning officers.
The council says the disruption will be minimal.
A council spokesperson said:
“The National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Functions in England came into effect on October 31, which is a new approach by Government as to how planning applications are considered by committees.
“To ensure that we are fully compliant, some meetings have been cancelled. The impact will be minimal.”
The temporary cancellations come after senior councillors warned the changes would reduce democratic accountability and make it harder for residents to have their concerns heard.
Under the new national rules, certain categories of planning applications must be decided by officers, with councillors no longer able to demand they are considered by a committee.
Other applications can only be referred to a committee in exceptional circumstances, where both a nominated councillor and a senior planning officer agree that they meet strict criteria.
North Yorkshire Council’s deputy leader, Cllr Mark Crane, previously criticised the changes, arguing that they would reduce the influence of elected representatives.
Green councillor Andy Brown also warned the changes could leave residents without an effective voice when controversial developments are proposed.
A report prepared for the council’s executive confirmed applications falling within categories reserved for officers would no longer be eligible for committee decisions, even where councillors had already requested that they be called in.
Although elected members will still be able to submit written representations, they will no longer have the power to insist on a committee hearing for those applications.
The report also warned decisions made by planning committees in breach of the new regulations could face judicial review and potentially be overturned.
The changes will additionally reduce the membership of North Yorkshire Council’s strategic planning committee from 15 to 13 councillors.
Council officers have stressed the authority has no choice but to implement the national requirements.
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