§ Mr. Cleggasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average length of time taken for a decision to be reached after a planning appeal; and whether he is satisfied with the present time scale.
§ Mr. John SilkinFor planning appeals decided in June 1976 the average times were as follows:
- 54 weeks in cases decided by the Secretary of State following a local inquiry.
- 47 weeks in cases decided by the Secretary of State by written representations.
- 29 weeks in cases decided by inspectors following a local inquiry.
- 23 weeks in cases decided by inspectors by written representations.
These figures represent a substantial improvement in performance over the recent past, which I hope will be maintained.