The Tories have written to construction industry representatives insisting that its new planning policy will not hold up energy projects.
The party has in recent weeks clarified its stance on planning, saying that the Infrastructure Planning Committee will be abolished and “incorporated” within the existing Planning Inspectorate. The minister will retain decision-making and have set deadlines within which to make decisions.
The IPC was brought in to deal with the planning delays which have dogged major energy infrastructure schemes, among other things.
Shadow Energy Minister Charles Hendry wrote to several industry bodies last week outlining the policy, adding that he understood the urgency of the matter: “As with all matters relating to energy policy, we are all too well aware that we do not have time on our side.”
The Tories believe that the IPC, rather than speeding up the process,will be “bogged down in legal challenges”, since it is less democratic than a ministerial decision.
The letter has failed to reassure some in the industry. Construction Products Association chief executive Michael Ankers said: “I cannot think of another example where a Secretary of State has had to make a decision to a set timetable. There is an inevitability that decisions could become politically influenced depending on when they fall in relation to elections.”
British Property Federation senior policy officer Jonathan Seager said: “We are not particularly fussed about what the planning mechanisms look like but we are fussed about the end result. If it speeds up the process then that is good. It is impossible to say whether it will or not at this stage.”
The IPC was brought in to deal with the planning delays which have dogged major energy infrastructure schemes, among other things.
Shadow Energy Minister Charles Hendry wrote to several industry bodies last week outlining the policy, adding that he understood the urgency of the matter: “As with all matters relating to energy policy, we are all too well aware that we do not have time on our side.”
The Tories believe that the IPC, rather than speeding up the process,will be “bogged down in legal challenges”, since it is less democratic than a ministerial decision.
The letter has failed to reassure some in the industry. Construction Products Association chief executive Michael Ankers said: “I cannot think of another example where a Secretary of State has had to make a decision to a set timetable. There is an inevitability that decisions could become politically influenced depending on when they fall in relation to elections.”
British Property Federation senior policy officer Jonathan Seager said: “We are not particularly fussed about what the planning mechanisms look like but we are fussed about the end result. If it speeds up the process then that is good. It is impossible to say whether it will or not at this stage.”
Source: Construction News
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