ABSTRACT
As explained in Chapter 16, only the applicant can take action to appeal against a decision of a local planning authority to refuse consent or grant consent subject to conditions. The planning authority is not required to give reasons for the grant of permission, and at present there is no provision which would allow a third party to challenge the decision. The public’s involvement in planning appeals can, therefore, only result from an action by the applicant. This situation could change as the Labour Party has indicated that it intends to ‘create a new right of appeal for residents against developments which fly in the face of their local plans’ but adds ‘… tightly defined rules would be necessary to restrict the right to bona fide objectors’.
