Graham Cooke has written as follows to the Daily Telegraph:September 2010

Sir,

Whilst it is difficult to argue that there are not elements of our planning system in need of more clarity, the latest mantra, 'presumption in favour of sustainable development' is political spin at its most devious.

The word 'sustainable' has been hijacked in the same way as 'robust', whereby politicians throw the word in at any point where their argument is weak.

The real deceit however, is in the impression given by the expression, 'presumption in favour of'. This clearly seeks to suggest that the current system is not based on this principle. This is simply not the case.

With the exception of proposals to develop on Green Belt land, local authorities will, in my experience, always consider applications on the basis that they should succeed unless they are not in accordance with local and national rules and guidelines. Developers will, understandably, seek to push the boundaries as far as possible when submitting applications and this results in some being unsuccessful. The Appeal System is there for applicants who consider that local authorities have rejected an application that they should have approved. It is worth noting that there is no appeal system for objectors to proposals who may consider that their local authority has approved a plan that should have been rejected.

By all means reform the system but not with meaningless sound bites.

Yours faithfully

Graham Cooke
Planning Convener
Thames Ditton Weston Green Residents Association