ABSTRACT
The Town and Country Planning Act (TCPA) 1947 (s 25) permitted local authorities to enter into agreements with any person with an interest in land in their area:
All such agreements required the approval of the Minister of Town and Country Planning, and the provision under s 25 was used infrequently. During the four years 1956-59, the number approved by the minister was 83, and in the 1960s, the number did not exceed 157 in any one year (see article by P Jowell [1977] JPL 423). The removal of the requirement to gain ministerial approval following the TCPA 1968 resulted in many authorities taking the opportunity to obtain ‘gains’ from developers which could not be obtained by planning conditions and which were considered to be of benefit to the community. The removal of the need for prior consent from the Secretary of State opened up a legal Pandora’s Box, the contents of which are constantly being produced. The critical issue is whether such agreements lead to, or can be construed as, the selling of planning permission by the local authority or, through offers made by developers, the buying of planning permission.
