Agenda item

Question from Councillor Dave Jones to the Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning

“My question relates to action to be taken by the Council at 5 Boggs Cottages, where personal permission was granted, at appeal, for the landowner and family to reside at the site following discharge of a number of conditions.  Under the appeal, the conditions of granting permission required discharge of drainage details, provisions for facilities for water and sewerage by the 20th March 2023.  The Council has since refused to discharge these conditions.  Given that the deadline for meeting these conditions was nearly 18 months ago, can the Portfolio Holder outline when the Council will take action over the failure to meet planning conditions.”  

The Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning stated that the planning permission in question was granted on appeal by the Planning Inspectorate and subject to a number of conditions.  It had become clear that compliance with the condition to provide a satisfactory drainage solution raised some technical issues which to date the owner had been unable to overcome. Consequently, the Council had not been able to discharge this condition.  In terms of subsequent enforcement action the Council had to consider a number of factors including what options would be available to enable the applicant to achieve an appropriate drainage scheme but also what the actual impact and harm of there being no drainage scheme in place was having on local residents/environment.

At the same time officers had been considering matters, they had also engaged legal advice.  In the light of national guidance and the Council’s own approved Enforcement Policy the  Council were obliged to assess the harm caused by the lack of an approved drainage scheme on the local residents and environment.  If no valid reasons could be put forward then arguably it would not be expedient to pursue any enforcement action.

Councillor Jones asked a supplementary question:

“Having spoken to the Planning Inspectorate he had been informed that the Council could take action as of 20 March, 2023.  Would the Portfolio Holder commit to taking action now, rather than later”.

The Portfolio Holder stated that part of the problem was with regard to the discharge of a particular condition.  Advice so far had been that the condition could not be discharged at this point in time.  Advice would need to be taken from lawyers regarding that but gave an undertaking that he would put that question to them and would report back to Councillor Jones.

Question from Councillor Paul Northcott to the Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning

“There has been coverage in the media about the resurrection of plans for a ‘high-speed’ rail link between Birmingham and Manchester. This would follow the same route as HS2 through Newcastle Borough affecting both my Borough Ward and County Division.

Does the Portfolio Holder agree with me that such a move would be a hammer blow to residents along the proposed route in Whitmore & Madeley who were relieved that HS2 had been scrapped by the previous Conservative Government, and like HS2 this latest proposal has no benefits for the rural area or the borough has a whole? “    

The Portfolio Holder stated that attempts were being made to resurrect what effectively would be a high speed route from Lichfield to the north west mirroring much of the previously planned HS2 Phase 2a route, which had been abandoned.  New plans had emerged and a report had duly been prepared by a consortium of private sector organisations and was published recently.

Any high speed link would not be to the benefit of this borough, its residents or the environment.  The impacts would be such that communities would likely be adversely affected and large areas of existing countryside would be taken up by the route and its related infrastructure. The plans now being talked about would likely have the same effects and bring no benefits and indeed cause further harm to those communities impacted by the original plans and associated works.     

Councillor Northcott asked a supplementary question:

“Would the Portfolio Holder write to Adam Jogee MP to gain his opposition towards any resurrection of plans for the high speed rail link and to oppose any other attempts to resurrect any similar schemes” 

The Portfolio Holder confirmed that he would do that.

Watch the debate here