Memorandum by the Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors (PI 10)
These comments from the Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors (RICS) have been prepared in response to the
request for evidence to the House of Commons Environment, Transport
and Regional Affairs Select Committee investigation into the Planning
Inspectorate.
The Planning Inspectorate is generally considered
to be providing a very effective and high quality service. The
Institution is therefore uncertain about why the Committee chose
to investigate it. We believe that there are a series of more
pressing issues affecting planning, most notably the under-resourcing
of local authority sector planning departments, which the Committee
should be addressing.
SPECIFIC COMMENTS
The relationship between the Inspectorate's internal
targets and the quality of the decisions made
The Inspectorate has greatly improved the speed
of their processes, without, we consider, damaging the quality
of the decision making process. Whilst to an extent this has been
achieved by the use of tighter timetables, we presume that in
the main it is because of increased resources. This has allowed
timescales to be improved without any loss in the quality and
consistency of the decision making process.
We understand that the unit costs incurred by
the Inspectorate are increasing. However as noted above, this
is a reflection of a faster, but just as high quality, decision
making process.
The consistency of decisions made
The Institution does have concerns about some
inconsistency between the decisions made by the Inspectorate.
The Inspectorate needs to guarantee that an effective internal
method is in place to ensure that they are aware of such inconsistencies.
We understand that this is being undertaken already by the Inspectorate.
However what must be recognised is that many
inconsistencies occur because of unclear and conflicting government
guidance. For example there is currently uncertainty about the
"cross-Whitehall" approach to the development of supermarkets
following recent statements surrounding competition policy. This
is also true for the other emerging areas, such as the development
of business clusters. In addition in housing it is still very
difficult to gauge what exactly a sequential approach means in
specific cases.
The relationship between the Inspectorate and
Government Offices
Whilst the Inspectorate has become faster, the
call in times set by the Government Offices have remained consistently
lengthy.
In addition although the Inspectorate has been
very good at ensuring that third party objections are clearly
outlined ahead of inquiries, the Government Office has failed
to effectively manage such objections, leading to delay and inconsistency
of approach.
The recent Performance and Innovation Unit report
into the role of central government at regional and local levels
overlooked the role of the Planning Inspectorate in ensuring a
consistent approach by local authorities to implementing central
government planning guidance.
The ability of the Inspectorate to adjust to changing
workloads, including the use of new technology and the volume
of Local Plan Inquiries
We have no complaints as customers of the Inspectorate's
service. Of real concern to the Institution is the under resourcing
of local authority planning departments which is a major barrier
to an effective planning system.
However as the type of evidence submitted to
planning inquiries becomes ever more detailed and complex there
will clearly be increasing resource implications for the Inspectorate.
The treatment of complaints to the Inspectorate
We believe that the Inspectorate is generally
very effective in the treatment of complaints. We strongly welcome
the independent panel which reviews the Inspectorate treatment
of complaints as an effective and transparent body.
The impact of human rights legislation
The Inspectorate and the Secretary of State
have to be independent of each other. We believe that there may
have to be changes to the status of the Inspectorate to ensure
and enshrine this independence.
Recruitment, training and equal opportunities
On the issue of equal opportunities what needs
to be recognised is the gender and racial balance of the professions
that the Inspectorate draws its staff from. The two major professional
institutions with an interest (the Royal Institution of Chartered
Surveyors and the Royal Town Planning Institute), have both recognised
that their membership is not representative of the public at large
and are actively trying to address these imbalances. We believe
this requires making the professions more attractive to those
in the education system and maintaining high professional standards.
Publicising public inquiries
Although we recognise that certain third party
objectors may have concerns about the adequate publicising of
public inquiries, the RICS considers that in general such inquiries
are well publicised.
What needs to be considered in this area is
the role of the local authorities. Local authorities, specifically
in local plan inquires, need to guarantee that effective mechanisms
are developed to ensure that the local community, including both
the residential and business community, is actively engaged in
defining the future of their local environment. This means that
local authorities must ensure the resources to undertake such
work is available.
Assistance for parties to inquiries
The Inspectorate is we believe very considerate
to third parties, and at times overly helpful. We do consider
that more guidance and stricter rules are required to ensure that
duplication in the presentation of third party evidence does not
occur. Often a string of objectors will be raising the same point,
and the Inspector must have the guidance to ensure that he can
restrict such presentations to objectors presenting new evidence.
Multiple objections can be noted in written evidence. We consider
that greater use should be made of pre-inquiry meetings.
Compliance with timetables
The Inspectorate, due to their much faster approach,
are often driving the pace of the planning process. Increasingly
applicants and objectors are having to change their own practices
to ensure that they are able to comply with the timetables set.
The availability of assessors for specialist inquiries
Due to the growing amount of evidence required
at planning inquiries there is a increasing need for specialist
advice. This means that there is an increasing cost in preparing
and assessing evidence. This needs to be considered when developing
future budgets.
It is difficult to find totally impartial assessors
as clearly many make their living as consultants and therefore
work for a range of clients. We do however believe that as long
as safeguards are in place to ensure transparency, trust will
remain in the system.
February 2000
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