§ 11. Mr. Blenkinsopasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has considered the implications of the interim report of Mr. George Dobry on planning procedures; and what action he proposes.
§ Mr. John SilkinI would refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the right hon. and learned Member for Hertfordshire, East (Sir D. Walker-Smith) on 25th March.—[Vol. 871, c. 28–29.] Mr. Blenkinsop: While welcoming any action of a practical kind on the part of my right hon. Friend, as indicated in the earlier answer, may I ask whether he nevertheless agrees that the real cause of discredit of planning is the recent purely negative rôle of development control? Will he insist that the Government's new proposals about land ownership ensure that planning is given a positive rôle?
Mr. SilkinI am grateful to my hon. Friend for his comment. It is a view that has been held by me and my family for the past 25 years.
§ Mr. RossiWill the right hon. Gentleman give urgent and immediate consideration to three propositions in the interim report? The first is public involvement. Too few local authorities still do not notify their communities of the impact of local planning applications. The second is the setting up of planning advisory centres, so that both the applicant and the public can obtain advice on a technical and difficult aspect of the law. Thirdly, there are the very useful comments made by Dobry on the slowness and difficulties involved in planning appeals. That is one of the factors which hinder the bringing forward of land for housing development.
§ Mr. SilkinThere is no difference between us regarding public involvement. It is a matter which can be carried a great deal further. I am wholeheartedly in agreement with planning advisory centres. The hon. Gentleman may know that an experimental planning advisory centre is being set up in Winchester. We hope that it will give us a great deal of information and that it will lead to further extensions of this very good proposal.
The appeal procedure has been somewhat lengthened by the large number of planning applications during the past two years or so. There is a considerable backlog, much of which is now being dealt with. People wishing to make planning application should be encouraged to go for written representation when they can. Sometimes there is prejudice against it, but by now a large number of applications are being dealt with by written representation. Those who make written applications do not complain about the procedure, and the time taken is considerably less than with the normal appeal procedure.