Council 'Cave In' over planning highlights need for reform says MP

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 8th Oct 2002

MP, Vincent Cable, strongly criticised the 'weakness' of Richmond council in giving into 'pressure' from developers and said that some recent 'appalling' decisions highlighted the need for objectors to have a right of appeal.

Vincent Cable plans to introduce a private members ('10 minute rule') legislation in this session of parliament to allow 'third party' objectors to appeal to the Secretary of State as they do already in Ireland.

He was highly critical of the decision of the council to 'cave in' last week to pressure from developers to expand Cole Court Lodge: "here was a very questionable development, opposed by all the local residents, to add a storey to an art deco building."

"The developer kept reapplying, did not address most of the council's concerns and the councillors simply caved in at the third time of asking. Then worse, the residents have legal conformation from the councillors solicitors that the building is of special architectural merit but the councillors seemed to believe that residents were just imagining things."

"The way the decision was made was outrageous and confirms my feeling that the scales are heavily tilted in favour of developers."

"And in this case the councillors just rolled over and did as they were told, as they did a few weeks ago with the Whitton telecoms mast".

"It really is absolutely essential that residents should have an equal right of appeal to developers. There is a fundamental injustice in the way the planning process is being conducted".