News

Concern over moves to weaken powers of local councils to control over-development

  • 4 Aug 2009

Theresa May has attacked proposed changes to planning rules, which will reduce the powers of the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead and Wokingham Borough Council to control out-of-town retail development.

The changes come in the form of new national planning rules on retail development. Local councils will have to observe the rules when assessing planning applications. The new regime will scrap the ‘needs test’, which requires developers to prove the ‘need’ for additional out-of-town development.

A new report from a cross-party House of Commons Committee has warned that the proposed changes to planning rules on retail development will result in “many more out-of-town superstores”. This comes as a separate nationwide survey by the British Retail Consortium has found that 1 in 10 of all town centre shops are now vacant.

The Government consultation exercise found that the changes would “lead to more edge-of and out-of-centre development” and “undermine regeneration schemes by allowing development outside town centres”. On top of this, a Committee of MPs has now warned that the changes will lead to “unnecessary risks to town centres”.

Theresa said, “I am very concerned that the Government is rewriting the rules which have protected against excessive out-of-town retail developments. Local councils need the power to stop unsuitable developments. This move could undermine their ability to protect our green open spaces and to protect town centres including in Maidenhead.”