§ Dr. Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment on what basis he decides that the successful side in a public planning inquiry should pay the costs of the loser; and if he will make a statement about his decision with regard to the public local inquiry held on 1 February 1983 into a gas handling depot at Leasingthorne.
§ Mr. Patrick JenkinParties at planning inquiries are normally expected to meet their own costs, irrespective of the outcome. The Secretary of State has a discretionary power to order one party to pay the costs of another party, but, in the light of advice from the Council on Tribunals, such orders are made only where it is considered that the unreasonable conduct of one party has caused another party to incur unnecessary expenditure.
In the Leasingthorne case, the local planning authority has cited safety issues as one of its reasons for refusing a planning application, but had called no expert evidence on this aspect at the subsequent inquiry. Although the applicant's appeal had been dismissed on other grounds, it was considered that it had been put to unnecessary expense in countering the safety objection and that the local planning authority ought to pay this part of the applicant's costs.