§ 7. Mr. Harry GreenwayTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from Ealing, North constituency about the operation of the planning regulations as they relate to the construction of mosques in industrial areas; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HowardA number of representations have been received from my hon. Friend and many of his constituents about a proposal to erect a mosque on the site of the former Sadia industrial works in his constituency. The planning issues to which the proposal gave rise were for the local planning authority to determine.
§ Mr. GreenwayWill my lion. and learned Friend confirm that Ealing council should rescind its mistaken planning permission for a mosque on the Northolt industrial site and find the Dawcodis Bhora community an alternative site? Is he aware that the people of Northolt have unanmously opposed the granting of planning permission for two years, most recently at a meeting attended by 1,000 people, which I chaired? They have written thousands of letters to the council which have been ignored. The council is refusing industrial applications on industrial sites which would bring jobs to the borough, so there is a perceived threat to jobs. Is this not a serious position that is damaging for race relations?
§ Mr. HowardI certainly confirm that the powers to revoke planning permission are contained in the Town and Country Planning Act 1971, but the exercise of those powers is, in the first instance, for the local planning authority.