To confirm the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee as a permanent arrangement. 

Any comments made by the Planning Committee at its meeting on 10 May 2016 will be provided to Members prior to the Council meeting. 

18.1           The report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, circulated at Pages No. 28-55, detailed the outcome of the review of the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee and sought to enable the Council to make a decision on the continuation of the Scheme based on the findings of the Overview and Scrutiny Working Group. Members were asked to confirm the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee as a permanent arrangement with the minor adjustments which were set out at Paragraph 5 of the report: to clarify that the deadline for registration is 10.00am on the working day before the meeting; to clarify the requirements for Ward Councillors wishing to speak at the Committee; to amend the scheme to allow a Parish Clerk to read a statement setting out the views of the Parish Council in the circumstance where no Parish Councillor is available to attend the meeting of the Planning Committee, subject to the required registration procedure being complied with (see Appendix 3); and to grant authority to the Borough Solicitor to review the wording of the scheme to ensure clarity without changing the fundamental elements of the scheme.

18.2           In proposing the report before the Council, the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee indicated that, at its meeting on 14 April 2015, the Council had resolved that a Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee be introduced for a one year trial period starting with the new term of the Council in May 2015 and so had commenced with the Planning Committee in June.  The Overview and Scrutiny Committee, at its meeting on 23 February 2016, had established a Working Group of seven Members to review the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee and approved the Terms of Reference which had been attached to the report at Appendix 1. The Group, under the Chairmanship of Councillor East, had met on four occasions. At the first two meetings users of the Scheme, including the public, agents, Parish Councils and Officers, were invited to put forward their views. Most of the participants were very complimentary about the Scheme in general and the management of the Planning Committee meetings. At the third meeting of the Group best practice from around the Country was reviewed and at the final meeting a draft report was prepared for submission to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The Overview and Scrutiny Committee had adopted the report of the Working Group which recommended to Council that the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning Committee be confirmed as a permanent arrangement with minor adjustments as set out at Paragraph 5 of the report. The report was also considered by the Planning Committee at its meeting on 10 May 2016 to invite any observations that Committee may wish to make to Council. The Planning Committee was supportive of the report with the only concern being in relation to the seating arrangements which was something for the Planning Committee to determine separately. 

18.3           The Chair of the Public Participation at Planning Committee Review Working Group seconded the proposal and offered his thanks to the Members and Officers that had been involved in the review. He felt that it had been extremely interesting to hear people’s views of the Scheme and particularly the positive support that had been noted by those that had attended to provide their views.

18.4           During the discussion which ensued, a Member questioned whether Ward Members had to register to speak at Committee in the same way that a member of the public did. He felt that this could be a problem if residents raised concerns with Councillors after the close of registration as this would mean the Member was not able to fulfil their role to the best of their ability. In response, the Borough Solicitor indicated that, for Ward Councillors particularly, there would usually be an exception made which meant that, with the Chair’s discretion, they would be able to speak. In response, the Chair of the Planning Committee sought to reassure Members that he would ensure local Members were not disenfranchised in any way and would always try to accommodate them if they wished to speak. The main reason for asking Members to register to speak in the same way as the public was to enable better management of the meeting but he would not wish to stop Members that wished to speak on behalf of residents in their areas.

18.5           Accordingly, it was

                  RESOLVED          That the Scheme for Public Participation at Planning                                           Committee be confirmed as a permanent arrangement with                                    minor adjustments as set out at Paragraph 5 and subject to an                                  acknowledgement that, whilst Ward Members are expected to                                     register to speak at Planning Committee in accordance with the                              Scheme, at the discretion of the Chairman the normal deadline                          for registration may be extended in circumstances where                                        residents’ concerns have been raised with the Ward Member                                 after the close of registration to speak.