Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, asked in the House of Commons what can be done to help Hinckley and Bosworth Council regarding their poor performance in the planning department, asking for a meeting with the Planning Minister.
Dr Evans was raising the issue of planning yet again, as figures obtained from the independent House of Commons Library shows that of the 329 total Local Planning Authorities (LPA) in England, 315 were performing above the expected threshold of 70%. The average performance in the East Midlands for the 24 months up to December 2022 was 84.2%, which towers above the Borough Council’s 46.5%.
The Lib Dem-run Borough Council’s performance – which is an outlier among other planning departments in Leicestershire, who all surpass the performance target – was addressed in the House of Commons. The MP asked Planning Minister Rachel Maclean “what more can a local MP and the Government do to help support the staff and our community to get the support they need?”
The Commons research states “On the speed of decision-making for non-major planning applications within statutory time limits (eight weeks or an extended period agreed with the applicant), Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council had the lowest performance among all [329] LPAs in the 24 months to end of December 2022.”
Non-major planning applications are everything from a house extension to a residential development of between one and nine dwellings. All Local Planning Authorities are expected to make decisions on such applications within eight weeks or an agreed upon timeframe.
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, said “I raised the concerning performance figures in the House of Commons and met with the Planning Minister, Rachel Maclean, to convey the concerns of residents. Regretfully this is not the first time I’ve met Minister Maclean to discuss Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and the importance of ensuring decisions on local matters, such as planning and housebuilding, remain local. I am really pleased to see the Government is engaging with Hinckley and Bosworth to drive up the standard and push for improvements.
“Since speaking in the House I have met with the Chief Executive of Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council to discuss the performance of the planning department. I’m pleased to hear progress is being made, with council staff – who have always worked hard for our community – now making decisions on applications in line with the Government’s performance target.
“It’s absolutely imperative that the Borough Council does not go into designation. I do not want to see local decision making taken away from those who are elected, but the Lid Dem leadership has a responsibility to work with the Government to produce improvements.
“Ultimately, it’s down to the planning department to ensure this doesn’t happen, I have sought reassurances from the Chief Executive to hear about recent improvements and offered further help in rectifying the situation.
“Decision making must absolutely stay in the hands of local people. To put our community in the best possible position to do this, we need an up-to-date Local Plan. This safeguards our community from further pressures on the likes of roads, schools and GP services. Until the Liberal Democrats get this plan in place, we will continue to have the problems which have blighted us for the last three years.
“At least in my role I can help to ensure the planning department gets the support it needs to be in a position to implement fully this most important plan."
