HL Deb 26 January 1983 vol 438 cc257-8

3.7 p.m.

Lord Kennet

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many appeals against refusals by planning authorities in Greater London to permit change of use to amusement centres have been allowed in the last three years and how many have been dismissed.

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, I regret that the information requested is not readily available.

Lord Kennet

My Lords, in seeking further information on the point, and bearing in mind that what we are talking about is the provision by which appointed inspectors are allowed to exercise the Secretary of State's power to override the decisions of elected representatives on local councils, may I ask the Minister to say whether the Government consider it satisfactory that statistics should not even be collected on the number of times they do so compared with the number of times when they allow the democratic decision to stand?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, I think the noble Lord misunderstood my Answer. The present clerical statistics system is designed to show the overall performance of the planning appeals system. Statistics are published quarterly and annually which indicate the number of decisions issued both by inspectors and the Secretary of State, with the median processing times for the four categories of appeal—that is, transferred inquiry and written representations cases and Secretary of State inquiry and written representations cases—and the success rate for each category of appeal. We now have a computer-based statistical system being developed which will provide such information as the noble Lord asked for in his original Question rapidly and inexpensively once the data base has been built up. Conversion of current appeals is expected to begin in April 1983. For reasons of economy, appeals already decided are not being recorded on the system.

Lord Kennet

My Lords, are the Government content not to be aware at present of how many times out of 100 the appointed inspector is over-ruling the democratically expressed wishes of the people of a given planning authority?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, this is not in all cases an appropriate way of discovering the facts which the noble Lord wishes to press me on, which is one of the reasons why the computer-based system will be introduced.