Powys County Council Planning Services must do much better. That is the stark message today from some County Councillors. A recent Review of the Service by the watchdog Regeneration and Environment Scrutiny Committee sets out a fourteen point list of urgent recommendations.
These include:
- regular monitoring of planning applications “delayed in the system”
- getting across to officials “that regeneration is one of the main priorities”
- tackling underperformance by officials “vigorously”
Conservative County Councillors Aled Davies and Russell George are pressing for action from portfolio holder Cllr Wynne Jones at the Powys Council Meeting this week.
Cllr Aled Davies comments: “I am constantly getting complaints from my constituents about the negative attitude of officials towards development proposals – just when Powys most needs to be encouraging economic regeneration. Powys Planning Services needs a completely different attitude towards the private sector. That’s where the work and the jobs are being created.”
Cllr Russell George himself gave evidence to the Scrutiny Review:
“One of the major problems in Planning Services is the underperformance of some officials. That puts an extra burden on those who are working properly and so often is at the root of the poor service which the Scrutiny Committee has highlighted. We have known about these problems for a very long time. The time for action is now.”
