Changes to the way Elmbridge Planning Applications are Handled!
Changes to the way Elmbridge Planning Applications are Handled
Elmbridge Council is proposing to change the way planning applications are handled. We believe the changes weaken the power of residents to have a say in what happens in their local area and are therefore undemocratic.
The Current System
Three Local Area Planning Sub-Committees and one Planning Committee. The local area sub-committees are comprised of locally elected ward councillors, who know their area. The main planning committee is comprised of 17 councillors from across the Borough, but not every ward.
- 92% planning applications are determined by planning officers, not councillors, under delegated authority.
- Nearly all other planning applications are decided by the local area planning sub-committees, comprised of local ward councillors.
- Minor applications (2-9 dwellings) are passed to the local area sub-committee when 5+ objections are received.
- Major applications (10+ dwellings) area passed to the local area sub-committee for review.
The Proposed System
- Minor applications (2-9 dwellings) only passed to the local area sub-committee when 15+ objections are received.
- Major applications (10+ dwellings) passed directly to the planning committee.
- Objections from groups such as Residents Associations will be viewed only as 1 objection.
- Objections to single dwelling applications will be dealt with solely by council officers, not councillors, irrespective of the number of objections.
In our view these changes effectively dilute the accountability of locally elected representatives. At a time when elections have been won, or lost, based on commitments to defend the Long Ditton Green Belt from development, we feel it is important that accountability remains with local area planning sub-committees, whose members have been elected based on these promises.
The decision to adopt this change is being made at the Planning Committee on Tuesday 23rd July 7.00pm. It seems quite wrong that the Planning Committee itself will decide on whether to grant itself more power, and reduce the influence of the local area planning sub-committees.
In principle the Long Ditton Residents Association disagrees with this proposed change and strongly disagrees with the way in which it is being implemented.
The Long Ditton Residents Association Committee
July 2019
