§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what penalties there are for mobile phone companies that fail to consult on the(a) erection and (b) upgrading of mobile phone masts; [163357]
(2) what requirements there are for mobile phone companies to consult residents when mobile phone masts near their homes are upgraded. [163359]
§ Keith HillThe statutory requirements on a local planning authority to consult once a planning application or application for prior approval has been submitted are set out in the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 and Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development Order) 1995 respectively.
Planning Policy Guidance Note 8 (revised) on Telecommunications together with the Code of Best Practice on Mobile Phone Network Development set out guidance and best practice for consultation on mobile mast development.
1269WBoth documents encourage the operators to undertake consultation and the traffic light model set out in the code is used to help develop a consultation plan for each proposed site. The operators have committed themselves to doing this and to independent monitoring of their implementation of this commitment.