Decision

The Leader of the Council has decided to respond to proposed changes in planning legislation that would impact planning applications and the size of the Planning Committee.

Analysis

outcome: The Council decided to respond to the government consultation, opposing the change in the operation of the planning committee and the proposed limits on the size of committees.

summary: The decision at stake is whether the Council should respond to proposed changes in planning legislation that would affect planning applications and the size of the Planning Committee.

topline: The Leader of the Council has decided to respond to proposed changes in planning legislation that would impact planning applications and the size of the Planning Committee.

reason_contentious: This issue is contentious as it involves potential changes to the delegation of planning applications and operation of planning committees, which could impact how decisions are made in the future.

affected_stakeholders: ["Council members", "Government officials", "Local residents", "Developers"]

contentiousness_score: 7

political_party_relevance: There are no explicit mentions of political parties in the decision, but it is likely that different parties may have differing views on the proposed changes.

URL: https://democracy.thanet.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=5387

Decision Maker: Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Strategy and Transformation

Outcome:

Is Key Decision?: No

Is Callable In?: No

Purpose: For the Council to respond to the statutory consultation in respect of the proposed new changes in planning legislation, which would affect planning applications that can be reported to the Planning Committee, the size of the Planning Committee and other ancillary matters. A motion for the leader to respond to the consultation on the proposed regulations “making a strong case that all applications should remain subject to call-in by elected councillors so that they and the interested parties can debate the issues openly, as now, and that no regulations should be introduced about the size of planning committees” was debated at Full Council on the 10th July 2025 and sent to Cabinet.

Content: For the Council to respond to the statutory consultation in respect of the proposed new changes in planning legislation, which would affect planning applications that can be reported to the Planning Committee, the size of the Planning Committee and other ancillary matters. A motion for the leader to respond to the consultation on the proposed regulations “making a strong case that all applications should remain subject to call-in by elected councillors so that they and the interested parties can debate the issues openly, as now, and that no regulations should be introduced about the size of planning committees” was debated at Full Council on the 10th July 2025 and sent to Cabinet. The Council to respond to the government consultation, opposing the change in the operation of the planning committee and the proposed limits on the size of committees. Thanet District Council (TDC) is responding to this government consultation because the Council holds a strong view regarding change to the delegation of planning applications and operation of planning committees and would like that view considered before the government makes a final decision on the matter. The decision is being made through an individual cabinet member decision in order for TDC to meet the deadline for submitting a response to the public consultation. Details of the Council's view on the government proposals are set out in the formal response document attached as annex 1 to this decision. The option to not respond to the consultation was not pursed to ensure that the views of the Council could be considered by the government prior to making a decision.

Date of Decision: July 17, 2025