Voting on a planning issue

Question

At our last Parish Council meeting during the public forum at the beginning of the meeting a developer who applied for planning, then produced a revised plan to the one on the planning portal which he handed to members of the public and councillors. then during the meeting the chairman asked councillors to vote on this revised plan is that legal?

Answer 1

Legal? don't know of any law against it. Was this a presentation to the council to inform them of changes proposed for a scheme which has failed ( or advised would fail by the planners) or a courtesy to assess the council's reaction to their scheme prior to application?. If it was an agenda item ( eg. "presentation on xxx by yyy") then councillors can quite happily accept it as information provided for their deliberations when the the application via the planners comes before them. It would be very unwise for the council to propose and second and vote on a matter without or before full information from the planners. If a council is taking up their position of commenting then surely they can only vote to do so honestly with full information.

Answer 2

Legal, lawful…..?

Wrong words to apply really. 

You’d probably struggle to find it to be unlawful - it is however inappropriate / bad practice / open to challenge and or criticism etc, etc

I think the premise of the question is correct, but it’s construct is a bit clumsy. 

The PC should vote upon that which is properly recorded as the plans and details which have been submitted to the local planning authority not that which is handed out at the meeting. 

What if the developer now doesn’t submit the amended version to the LPA - you will have recorded a vote of support or opposition to something which is not as submitted. 

Comments

Just to clarify - the consultation comment of the PC is invited by the LPA not the developer and so it is the plans held by the LPA (rather than the developer) which should be commented upon.

Answer 3

The Parish Councillors can vote on anything that resolve to, but there is a caveat here.  The revised plan still needs to be considered by the planners in the principal council (Planning Authority).  The PA should post the revised plan on their Public Access (NOT Planning Portal) website as soon as it is received  It is possible that the revised plan may render the application to be refused where it may other have been granted.  Or visa versa. In summary, the Parish Councillors can't really be certain of what they are voting for until it appears on the Public Access website.

Answer 4

At Borough level we are told under no circumstances talk to anyone gathered to attend the meeting or accept any papers or envelopes from anyone even if it’s nothing to do with the meeting as it might give the wrong impression 

If it ain’t on the portal it doesn’t exist