PLANNING APPLICATIONS: COMPULSORY PUBLICITY (Hansard, 6 February 1992)

§ The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (Baroness Blatch)

We are pleased to announce today arrangements for compulsory publicity for all planning applications. The new procedures will ensure that interested parties have the opportunity to comment on all planning applications affecting them.

The new arrangements will allow local planning authorities the maximum possible discretion to continue using the procedures which many of them have had in place for a long time. They are as follows:

(a) local planning authorities will be responsible for publicising planning applications;
(b) the list of so-called "bad neighbour" developments in Article 11 of the General Development Order 1988 will be abolished, and the link with environmental statements, required under Regulation 12 of the Environmental Assessment Regulations, will be severed;
(c) developments requiring environmental statements, departures from the development plan, and those affecting rights of way will be subject to compulsory site notices and newspaper advertising;
(d) for other major development, site notices or neighbour notification (as appropriate) and newspaper advertising will be required;
(e) for minor development, site notices or neighbour notification (as appropriate) will be required;
(f) publicity for reserved matters and amendments to planning applications will be at the discretion of local planning authorities;
(g) the same procedures will apply to development by the Crown, and to local authorities' own development;
(h) the Department of the Environment will issue a circular in advance of the new legislation. It will give advice on best practice, including what constitutes "major" and "minor" development, and on notification of decisions to those who have commented on planning applications.

We are making this announcement in advance of the new arrangements taking effect on 4th May, to allow local authorities time to digest the changes. But we look to them to implement the new procedures as soon as possible, and not just to wait until the new legislative requirements come into force.

Since most local planning authorities already undertake some form of publicity for planning applications, we do not believe these new procedures will represent a significant increase in costs overall. However, they will be taken into account when we next review planning application fees.