PLAN UPFRONT
able to deal with the applications in a timely fashion – it is the timescales that are a concern”. “Chronic” underresourcing and a lack of training has led to a loss of quality service that applicants receive. “What we need is experienced, qualified planners.” Richard Greaves MRTPI, chief planning officer at Essex County Council, reminisced that he used to introduce himself as a biscuit designer for McVities, “seemingly far more engaging than labelling myself a town planner, and everybody knows what a chocolate digestive is”. “I used to claim my latest work was a long-term project redesigning the bourbon, and people were genuinely intrigued.” The project failed because “the bourbon is a classic ergonomic design and just can’t be made more workable”. “I used to say, if it isn’t broken then don’t try and fix it. Which leads me on to the topic of planning reform. We all want a system that works.
No unnecessary delays and beautiful development in the right place at the right time, as well as concerns for those special places. Personally, I’m not sure the reforms will enable these ambitions to be achieved, but we should give it a go and work with whatever is imposed, much like we’ve done since 1947.” He added that this doesn’t mean the bourbon biscuit is perfect, but that it took time and a lot of reform to get to where it is now. “Let’s keep the good bits and improve the bad bits, but above all we need to understand the value of planning and perhaps more importantly the legacy planning decisions, notably minerals planning decisions, we take can have on the quality of people’s lives.”
“WHAT WE NEED IS EXPERIENCED, QUALIFIED PLANNERS” – STEPHEN REDWOOD
Welsh ministers put freeze on road-building pending net zero review The deputy minister for climate change, Lee Waters, told the Senedd in June that reaching the goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 would require a ‘huge effort’. “In the next 10 years we are going to need to more than double all the cuts we have managed over the last 30 years if we are going to keep temperature rises within safe limits," said Waters. “That means changes in all parts of our lives. Transport makes up some 17 per cent of our total emissions and must play its part.” He added: “We need a shift away from spending money on projects that encourage more people to drive and spend more money on maintaining our roads and investing in real alternatives that give people a meaningful choice.” New ‘super ministry’ The minister said that an external panel would carry out the nine-month review and report to the new ‘super ministry’. The members of the panel have not yet been named. The panel’s terms of reference will be published in due course. However, the minister stressed: “The review is expected to consider how we can shift spending towards better maintaining our existing roads, rather than building new ones, and look at all proposed road investments, whether funded directly by the Welsh Government or indirectly by grants.” He added: “The panel will be asked to consider setting tests for when new roads are the right solutions for transport problems in line with Llwybr Newydd, the recently published Wales transport strategy.” The freeze will not affect road schemes already under way but will mean that projects like the Llandeilo bypass, the A55 red route and another bridge to Anglesey will be put on hold.
Clydach Gorge Gateway Bridge over A465 Heads of the Valleys Road, Blaenau Gwent
I M AG E S | G E T T Y / I STO C K
AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 / THE PLA NNER 9
