New planning shake-up would speed up projects

The Development & Planning Authority wants to streamline the process for making exceptional, significant or minor amendments during the 10-year lifetime of development plans.

It would be the biggest shake-up of the island’s land planning procedures for 20 years and roll back some of the rules which have made it costly and time consuming to make even minor alterations to development plans.

The changes will be voted on next week after deputies agreed that a policy letter submitted by the authority only last week should be debated at their next meeting.

‘Any amendment to development plans, regardless of their significance or strategic importance, has to follow a lengthy and resource-intensive process which the authority considers in some cases to be overly bureaucratic and disproportionate,’ said DPA president Victoria Oliver.

At present, almost any amendment must go through the same statutory procedure used for the creation of an entirely new development plan, which can involve up to 12 steps, including appointing a planning inspector and holding a planning inquiry.

‘Maintaining the status quo results in significant delays to amendments, which risks having an impact on commercial and housing development,’ said Deputy Oliver.

‘Streamlining the amendment process will help to ensure that the land use planning process is an enabler in the delivery of government objectives and priorities, not an impediment.’

The proposals in front of the States next week would set a policy direction to simplify amendment procedures. Putting the changes into effect would require legislative drafting, which would need to be completed by the next Assembly.

The authority has recommended slightly different procedures depending on the type of amendment being made to development plans.

Minor amendments would be put out to consultation before being finalised by the authority. The States Assembly would not be required to approve them, but it could strike them down, in a procedure similar to statutory instruments made by committees.

Significant amendments would require consultation, but the authority would have more freedom to decide whether to bring in an independent inspector and set up a planning inquiry. They would need the approval of the Assembly.

A similar procedure would apply to amendments to allow strategically essential developments.

Although public inquiries have been part of the island’s planning regime for 60 years, additional layers of legislation and policy created since around 2002 have erected more formidable barriers against altering development plans.

Although the latest proposals would start to reverse this trend, the authority said in its policy letter that it will remain committed to ‘fundamental land planning principles’ and ‘fairness and human rights considerations’.

Its vice-president Deputy Andrew Taylor has come out against the proposed new procedures, except those relating to the most minor amendments to development plans, but the other four members of the authority are in favour of each of the recommendations submitted to the States.

Deputy Oliver said that simplifying procedures would allow the authority to be more responsive and bring about cost savings.

‘Current examples of where this would be of benefit can be seen in the island’s housing supply issues and the economy,’ she said.

‘There are certain to be further circumstances which arise during the 10-year lifespan of each development plan.’