PAPER E
Report of : HEAD OF PLANNING SERVICES
Committee : DEVELOPMENT CONTROL SUB COMMITTEE
Date : 27 JUNE 2006
Title : PROPOSED VARIATION OF STANDING ORDERS ON
PUBLIC SPEAKING
PAPER E
Report of : HEAD OF PLANNING SERVICES
Committee : DEVELOPMENT CONTROL SUB COMMITTEE
Date : 27 JUNE 2006
Title : PROPOSED VARIATION OF STANDING ORDERS ON
PUBLIC SPEAKING
1.
Purpose
of Report
1.1
To
recommend that standing orders on Public Speaking are varied in respect of the
application for Wind Turbines at Wellow and the SEEDA and Kingston applications
at East Cowes.
2.
Background
2.1
Two
special meetings have now been arranged to determine applications of
Island-wide significance. The application
for Wind Turbines at Wellow will be considered on 25 September 2006. The applications submitted by SEEDA and
Barratt Homes in East Cowes will be considered on 11 July 2006. In both cases these will be the only
applications on the appropriate agendas.
2.2
All
three applications raise significant and complex issues. It is considered appropriate that the normal
three minutes allocated for the various groups of speakers is insufficient to
allow for a proper and full debate of the issues.
3.
Strategic
Context
3.1
The
application for Wind Turbines seeks to respond to national planning policy
guidance on renewable energy (PPS 22), together with regional and local
policies. It is anticipated that the application will attract significant
levels of comment and attention.
3.2
The
two applications in East Cowes propose housing and employment schemes of
strategic importance both in relation to existing UDP policies and the evolving
Island Plan.
4.
Consultation
4.1
All
three applications have either, or will be likely to attract significant levels
of both consultee and local comment.
5.
Financial/Budget
Implications
5.1
None
envisaged as a result of this report.
5.2
The
holding of special meetings of the Committee will have minor financial
implications which can be met from within existing budgets.
6.
Legal
Implications
6.1
In
order to ensure equality of Arms, any increase in time must be afforded equally
to all entitled to speak.
7.
Options
7.1
It
would appear that the options available to the Council are as follows:
(a)
Retain
the normal three minutes public speaking rights for these particular
applications.
(b)
Suspend
the normal 3 minutes in paragraphs 62 of the Code of Practice for Councillors
and Officers dealing with Development Control matters, to enable an increase in
public speaking rights to five minutes for each of the two East Cowes
applications and to ten minutes for the Wellow application.
(c)
Suspend
the normal 3 minutes in paragraphs 62 of the Code of Practice for Councillors
and Officers dealing with Development Control matters, to enable an increase in
public speaking rights to some other time period.
8.
Evaluation/Risk
Management
8.1
It is
clear that these applications are of Island-wide significance. To increase the public speaking time would
be an appropriate option.
8.2
There
is an inevitable risk that other groups of applicants and/or objectors may make
a similar case for future applications.
It is unlikely however that these other applications will raise the
complexity of issues raised by these three applications. In the event that other applications of
Island-wide significance are submitted in the future your officers will bring
forward other reports of this nature.
8.3
As
long as the increase of public speaking time is even handed to all concerned
the risks of amending the usual system appear minor. The risks of reducing the amount of public speaking time would be
significant.
RECOMMENDATIONS
It is recommended that option
(b) above be authorised for the two special meetings of the Committee. |
None.
Contact Point : Andrew
Ashcroft, Head of Planning Services, ' 823552 (x 5551)