New planning quango will fuel public disillusionment with politics
Government puts democracy on the scrapheap warns Janice Small
As Gordon Brown’s controversial planning quango, the Infrastructure Planning Commission, opens its doors this month, Janice has warned it will fuel public disillusionment with politics.
· The new unelected body is to take control of determining planning applications on large projects including airports, motorways, railways, dams/reservoirs, overhead electric lines, gas pipelines, gas storage, power stations, waste water treatment plants and hazardous waste facilities. It will base its decisions on National Policy Statements issued by Ministers as diktats with no substantive vote in Parliament.
· Despite Gordon Brown’s recent TUC speech promising to “cut costs”, the new quango will cost £10 million a year, and its Chairman will be paid £184,000 a year for a four day week. The Commissioners will be appointed on a minimum fixed term of five years and cannot be removed short of criminal misconduct – making them the most unaccountable quangocrats in Britain.
· At a stroke, local residents, local authorities like Kirklees and elected representatives will be stripped of any say on the most controversial planning decisions that will affect the lives of tens of thousands of people. This contradicts Gordon Brown’s promise when he became Prime Minister to stop politics being “a spectator sport.” Conservatives are warning that the new planning regime will also lead to a flood of legal challenges in the High Court and the European Court of Justice.
· Under Conservative plans, the Infrastructure Planning Commission will be abolished. National Policy Statements would remain – but each one would have to be ratified by both Houses of Parliament to ensure democratic legitimacy, and to reduce the scope for legal challenges.
Janice said:
“Trust in politics is at an all time low, and Gordon Brown’s response is to put democracy on the scrapheap. Batley and Spen’s residents and their elected representatives are being disenfranchised on a massive scale by the most unaccountable quangocrats ever created.
As someone that campaigns against bigger and more costly government, and who would like to see most quangos abolished and power devolved down to the most practical elected level, this is anathema to my politics and an insult to taxpayers and the electorate.”
Notes to Editors
NEW PLANNING QUANGO
- The Infrastructure Planning Commission will go live from 1 October 2009.
“We will establish the IPC from 1 October” (Hansard, 14 July 2009, col. 9WS).
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090714/wmstext/90714m0001.htm#09071449000113
- A list of the types of development that it will oversee is listed at:
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2008/ukpga_20080029_en_3#pt3-pb1-l1g14
- It will cost almost £10 million a year to run.
“To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her latest estimate is of the (a) capital and (b) running costs of the Infrastructure Planning Commission in 2009-10.
Mr. Iain Wright: In January this year we published an annex to the Planning Bill impact assessment which confirmed that the costs are within the margin of error allowed for within the original impact assessment and the estimated set up and running costs of the Infrastructure Planning Commission remain at £5 million and £9.3 million respectively.”
Hansard , 17 March 2009, col. 1110W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090317/text/90317w0030.htm#09031796004625
- The Chairman will be paid £184,000 for a four day week.
“To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the remuneration package will be for each member of the Infrastructure Planning Commission.
Mr. Iain Wright: The Chair of the Infrastructure Planning Commission will receive £184,000 per annum based on a time commitment of four days per week (that is £230,000 per annum pro rata). The posts of deputy chair and commissioner have recently been advertised at £125,000 and £100,000 pro rata per annum respectively, for a time commitment of three to five days per week. None of the posts are pensionable.”
Hansard , 17 March 2009, col. 1110W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090317/text/90317w0030.htm#09031796004625
- The Chair, Deputies and Commissioners are appointed for between five to eight years, and cannot be removed until they have been convicted of a criminal offence or are “unable” or “unfit to perform the duties of offence”.
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2008/ukpga_20080029_en_19#sch1
- No assessment has been made of the likely legal challenges it will face – in both the High Courts and the European Court of Justice.
“Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate her Department has made of the number of applications for judicial review of discussions taken by the Infrastructure Planning Commission which will be made in the first three years of its operation.
Mr. Iain Wright: The number of judicial reviews the Infrastructure Planning Commission is likely to face in the first three years of its operation depends on a number of unknown variables. As such it is not possible to make a meaningful estimate of their number. However, I am confident that the Commission will ensure its decisions are robust and would be able to defended legal challenges vigorously.”
Hansard , 20 April 2009, col. 434W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090420/text/90420w0101.htm#09042240004929
GORDON BROWN’S BROKEN PROMISES
The new quango contradicts Gordon Brown’s pledge to give local people more power and introduce a new politics:
“To those who feel Westminster is a distant place and politics simply a spectator sport... I want to become a voice for communities far beyond ... to build trust in our democracy, we need a more open form of dialogue for citizens and politicians to genuinely debate problems and solutions” (Gordon Brown, Speech accepting the nomination as Leader of the Labour Party, 17 May 2007).
“I believe that Britain needs a new type of politics... a politics that takes a hard look at the tough questions, not the easy path of short-term slogans... normal politics, this old tired sloganising politics of the past, should not resume in the old ways this autumn... the depths of our new concerns cannot be met by the shallowness of an old-style politics” (Speech to the National Council of Voluntary Organisations, 3 September 2007).
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