Planning Bill

This has been a very long debate, necessarily so as there is a huge range of amendments in the group. It is testimony to the integrity of this House that so much time has been spent on what the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, rightly said lies at the heart of this: the need for a credible process so that people genuinely own the changes under the Bill. These amendments address consultation at the pre-application stage. We must remember that this is a new, very welcome part of the planning process. I am sympathetic to much of what noble Lords said, and I hope I can reassure them wherever possible. There is currently no requirement in the planning system for promoters to undertake pre-application consultation, though they do it as a matter of good practice. Part 5 seeks, therefore, to set out standards and processes that should be common to all applications but which are flexible enough to meet the needs of large and small, and more and less complex, projects. Three principles will guide the consultation. First, it should be early so that people not only have their influence felt but know they have influenced the process and that their views have been taken into account at the formative stage, when it counts. The promoters must be able to refine and improve their proposals by identifying problems early on, by negotiating on and discussing those issues with the local community and suggesting solutions. That will improve the quality of the application. The second principle is that consultation must take place with the relevant people and local authorities, statutory consultees and people with an interest in the land or whose land could be affected by proposals. Thirdly, the consultation must be undertaken with the local community. It has to reach into communities to make sure that those affected have a say. That is why the promoter is required to consult the local authority on how to consult local people. Local authorities can give detailed guidance on how to undertake local consultation, in the light of the proposals and of the nature of the local community. That could include which bodies and groups should particularly be referred to, what timescales are appropriate and so on. In addition, promoters must have regard to any guidance from the IPC. The IPC may wish to give general guidance as to how consultation should be carried out. That is important, as the IPC must be satisfied that consultation has been properly carried out before it accepts an application. Thirdly, a promoter must have regard to any guidance from the Secretary of State, including any guidance from the Secretary of State about community involvement in planning. This is likely to be in the form of broad, strategic guidance on consulting with local communities. There is a robust set of requirements surrounding this process. Turning to the amendments and the issues they raise, Amendment No. 185 of the noble Lord, Lord Dixon-Smith, and the noble Earl, Lord Cathcart, would require that a list of statutory consultees for pre-application consultation must include residents who would be affected by the proposals. Amendment No. 184 of the Opposition and Liberal Front Benches would require this list to include persons living within each affected local authority, as defined by Clause 42. In saying why the amendments are unnecessary, I shall explain the ways in which the Bill meets the objectives, and how the consultation will capture those people it should. First, Clause 41 requires consultation with local authorities, statutory consultees, and those who would be directly affected because they either have an interest in the land, or because their land would be affected to such an extent that they might be able to make a claim for compensation. Secondly, Clause 46 provides that promoters must draw up a statement setting out how they propose to consult people living in the vicinity of the land. There is no legal definition of ““vicinity””, so if we take the dictionary definition it would mean, ““people living nearby””. That captures what the noble Lords are concerned about to a large extent. We must remember that the principle behind this drafting is quite simple. The projects will vary in size and complexity, and impacts will vary. For example, an underground gas storage facility may affect people located nearby, but have little effect on wider traffic flows. As we have heard from the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, an airport, for example, affects traffic flows over a wider area. We must therefore have some flexibility abut the definition. Rather than prescribe a rigid and, frankly, artificial geographical boundary for consultation, the Bill gives promoters the flexibility to make a judgment about what ““vicinity”” means in each case, based on the detail of the proposal. However, I reiterate—and assure the noble Lord, Lord Dixon-Smith—that this judgment is subject to the safeguards outlined above for those different requirements for advice and to follow guidance. To ensure wider coverage, promoters must also publicise both the proposed application under Clause 47 and the local community consultation statement under Clause 46. In both cases, the Secretary of State may prescribe in secondary legislation how this should be carried out. I therefore hope that this will meet the purposes of those amendments. Amendment No. 202 seeks to require that regulations under Clause 47(2) must make provision as to the scope and content of consultation documents to be provided. As I said above, projects will obviously vary enormously, and it would therefore be quite difficult to make regulations about scope and content both useful and universal. They would have to be very broad and therefore probably quite banal and perhaps not very useful. There will be a significant body of advice and guidance to which the promoter must have regard when undertaking consultation. Moreover, the IPC must decide whether the applicant has complied with the provisions of Part 5 before it can accept an application. As the arbiter of this matter, and as the body with responsibility for the new regime, they should therefore be responsible for providing guidance on how the requirements should be complied with. Amendment No. 183A of the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, and the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, would clarify that a promoter could organise consultation under Clause 41 through a third party. Members of the Committee will understand that, through these provisions, we are trying to initiate a proper dialogue between the promoter and the local community. On the grounds of responsibility, the promoter should have overall control and can be held responsible for this process. I take issue with the noble Lord, Lord Cameron, on this: it does not mean that the promoter runs the process. The promoter will be under some serious requirements to follow the guidance I have already spelt out. They must ensure that the application meets those standards. One of the purposes of consultation at this stage is to identify any significant impacts of proposals. The promoter must address that, take account of them and amend the proposal. This does not mean that a promoter could not appoint a third party to assist them in carrying out this consultation. Nothing would stop that if it was felt a better process. The clause does not rule out that possibility. However, it is vital that the duty should bear directly on the promoter and they must take direct responsibility for it.