Planning conditions and environmental impact assessments
Response to story on planning conditions and environmental impact assessments.
A Department for Communities and Local Government spokesman said:
Planning conditions are attached to planning permissions when they are granted. The government is concerned that too many unreasonable conditions are imposed, which can be up to 100 different requirements. In turn, these can then prevent construction work starting on sites and houses being built, sometimes adding years to the planning process.
Environmental impact assessments stem from European Union law and impose significant costs on the planning system, over and above long-standing, domestic environmental safeguards. It has become apparent that some local planning authorities require detailed assessment of all environmental issues irrespective of whether EU directives actually require it; similarly, some developers do more than is actually necessary to avoid the possibility of more costly legal challenges, which adds delays and cost to the application process.