Planning applications: key agency rapid planning audits

Considerations

Report to Scottish Parliament

For consideration in due course and further to the step changes recommended in this Review, with a view to completing the loop of scrutiny and accountability, the suggestion of creating a more direct link of accountability to the Scottish Parliament could be explored.

Key Agencies joint statement on pre-application advice

All signatory Agencies (as extends to more than the 5 covered by this Review) should be encouraged to consider making a commitment to the development of an updated version of the Key Agencies joint statement on pre-application advice in consequence of Recommendation 9 (and to reflect NPF4).

Validation

In consequence of Recommendation 10, there may be a need to consider consequential changes to regulation 9 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 (content of validation request).

Town and Country Planning (Notification of Applications) (Scotland) Direction 2009

In respect of the Town and Country Planning (Notification of Applications) (Scotland) Direction 2009 there may be a need to consider consequential changes to that Direction on (a) the review of Schedule 5 to the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 in consequence of Recommendation 7 and (b) the need for alignment of that Direction, in consequence of Recommendation 10, with the changes proposed in requiring mandatory additional pre app engagement. On (b), the amended alignment would relate to category 2 circumstances in the Direction (Objection by Government Agency) by adding to the list of documents to be submitted at paragraph 23, a summary of the pre app requirements as met and a note of the outcomes of that process, along the lines of paragraph 23(f).

Regulation 25(3) of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013

Agencies should give consideration to whether the recommendations in this Report could potentially facilitate an ability to utilise a greater level of exclusion from consultation under regulation 25(3) of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013.

Reasons not to use the fast track system

Agencies should give consideration to providing bespoke guidance on the circumstances when they may be unable to offer the service involving the fast track system, as part of Recommendation 14 (triage).

Websites

Detailed suggestions are made in Annex 2 about potential improvements for consideration.

Call-in

Although I conclude that use of call-in powers is not a solution in itself, there may be consequences for PARD in the approaches taken to call-in, in consequence of, or to complement, the implementation of the recommendations in this Report.

Other defined key agencies

If these reflections are considered valuable, consideration could be given to rolling certain changes out to other key agencies covered by the statutory definition in regulation 28 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2008 and as consultees in Schedule 5 to the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013.