A useful and timely report from the Local Government Ombudsman:
Some interesting bits:
“… The government has recently introduced new legislation which requires council officers who grant permission under delegated powers to produce a written record of that decision. Councils must make the record available at their offices and on their websites. These written decision records must be kept for a period of six years and any background documents must be kept for four years. This only applies to decision made by officers with delegated powers however there is no reason why councils should not extend this to decisions made by committee. “
Ahmir’s Story:
“Ahmir complained the council had given a local councillor planning permission for a house in an area of outstanding national beauty. The councillor was close friends with the Chairman of the Planning Committee. We found that both councillors had a close relationship as they and their families regularly attended the same social functions. The Chairman of the Planning Committee failed to declare this.
The council’s constitution and Code of Conduct said councillors must not take part in a meeting if they had a ‘prejudicial interest’ in what was being discussed. We found the chairman was at fault for not declaring an interest and that he should not have taken part in the meeting.
The council’s officer report recommended the committee refuse planning permission for the house because it was contrary to national and local policies and could set a precedent for inappropriate development in an area of outstanding natural beauty. The vote in favour of granting planning permission was finely balanced. If the chairman had not taken part in the meeting planning permission would have been refused.
Following our investigations the Leader of the Council applied to court to have the committee’s decision overturned. The judge overturned the decision and said “any fair-minded and informed observer would conclude that there was indeed a real possibility of bias in the decision to grant planning permission”. The Council incurred significant costs in dealing with the complaint and subsequent court action. The applicant wasn’t able to recover the cost of building the house or any of their legal fees. …”
East Devon Watch 