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I know we're not a political group but this may be the news we've been waiting for:

From the Coalition Programme for Government published today:

Communities and local government
The Government believes that it is time for a fundamental shift of power from Westminster to people. We will promote decentralisation and democratic engagement, and we will end the era of top-down government by giving new powers to local councils, communities, neighbourhoods and individuals.

We will promote the radical devolution of power and greater financial autonomy to local government and community groups. This will include a review of local government finance.
***We will rapidly abolish Regional Spatial Strategies and return decision-making powers on housing and planning to local councils, including giving councils new powers to stop ‘garden grabbing’.

In the longer term, we will radically reform the planning system to give neighbourhoods far more ability to determine the shape of the places in which their inhabitants live, based on the principles set out in the Conservative Party publication ‘Open Source Planning’.
We will abolish the unelected Infrastructure Planning Commission and replace it with an efficient and democratically accountable system that provides a fast-track process for major infrastructure projects.
We will publish and present to Parliament a simple and consolidated national planning framework covering all forms of development and setting out national economic, environmental and social priorities.
****We will maintain the Green Belt, Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and other environmental protections, and create a new designation – similar to SSSIs – to protect green areas of particular importance to local communities.

We will abolish the Government Office for London and consider the case for abolishing the remaining Government Offices.
We will provide more protection against aggressive bailiffs and unreasonable charging orders, ensure that courts have the power to insist that repossession is always a last resort, and ban orders for sale on unsecured debts of less than £25,000.
We will explore a range of measures to bring empty homes into use.
We will promote shared ownership schemes and help social tenants and others to own or part-own their home.
We will promote ‘Home on the Farm’ schemes that encourage farmers to convert existing buildings into affordable housing.
We will create new trusts that will make it simpler for communities to provide homes for local people.
We will phase out the ring-fencing of grants to local government and review the unfair Housing Revenue Account.
We will freeze Council Tax in England for at least one year, and seek to freeze it for a further year, in partnership with local authorities.
We will create directly elected mayors in the 12 largest English cities, subject to confirmatory referendums and full scrutiny by elected councillors.
We will give councils a general power of competence.
We will ban the use of powers in the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) by councils, unless they are signed off by a magistrate and required for stopping serious crime.
We will allow councils to return to the committee system, should they wish to.
We will abolish the Standards Board regime.
We will stop the restructuring of councils in Norfolk, Suffolk and Devon, and stop plans to force the regionalisation of the fire service.
We will impose tougher rules to stop unfair competition by local authority newspapers.
We will introduce new powers to help communities save local facilities and services threatened with closure, and give communities the right to bid to take over local state-run services.
We will implement the Sustainable Communities Act, so that citizens know how taxpayers’ money is spent in their area and have a greater say over how it is spent.
We will cut local government inspection and abolish the Comprehensive Area Assessment.
We will require continuous improvements to the energy efficiency of new housing.
We will provide incentives for local authorities to deliver sustainable development, including for new homes and businesses.
We will review the effectiveness of the raising of the stamp duty threshold for first-time buyers.
We will give councillors the power to vote on large salary packages for unelected council officials. 





 

Local News

Somerset
 - Taunton

The Taunton Group needs your help NOW!

Mike said, "We have been astounded at the support we have received from our local population. We’ve even been mentioned in the Houses of Parliament this week http://www.vivarywedge.org.uk/news.html

We only have a few days left (Feb 28th) to register objections to our council building thousands of houses on the valuable Green Wedges in our rural town.

Could I ask you to go to our website and click on the comment form on our website. It only takes a few simple clicks then the form automatically registers a comment with our council planning department. We have had thousands of hits so far but still need many more.

We want our council to build on the brown-field sites not the green ones. Developers have taken control of our town!

We stand a better chance if we stand together and try to stop this Government ripping up our green fields.

Regards
Mike Threlfall
Save our Vivary Green Wedge Campaign
www.vivarywedge.org.uk"
 

South Glos

Oldland Common - March 2010  Baker is back. He has filed another outline application http://planning.southglos.gov.uk/WAM/findCaseFile.do;jsessionid=F9FD474B535C99D3C003FA1FC171C61B?appNumber=PK10%2F10484%2FO&appType=planning&action=Search

General - 8th March 2010 2:00pm the Core Stategy will be discussed. WARNING THIS IS A 10Mb FILE - IF YOU HAVE A SLOW CONNECTION IT MAY TAKE A LONG TIME TO DOWNLOAD!

Mangotsfield - 19th Feb 2010 - Taylor Wimpeys plans thrown out - will they appeal?
 
Oldland Common A date has been set for a public inquiry into a controversial scheme to build 450 homes on green belt land in Oldland Common. The hearing will be held at the Yate Outdoor Sports Complex, where members of campaign group Save Our Green Spaces (SOGS) will take on developers behind the project. Planners at South Gloucestershire Council threw out the proposal by Strategic Land Partnerships in October after receiving 1,752 letters from people opposed to the scheme. The developers also included a 60-bed care home for the elderly in their application, along with shops, offices and space for a new primary school on what are currently five fields. After being rejected, they lodged a formal appeal against the council's ruling and a final decision will now be taken by the Secretary of State after an inspector hears evidence from all sides. It is anticipated the hearing, to start on February 9, will last for four days. Strategic Land Partnerships claims that South Gloucestershire has run out of development land and the site near Park Farm is suitable to be developed. But opponents said the land was green belt that should remain protected. They also raised concerns about traffic congestion, pollution, flooding and the effect on existing businesses of new shops. The Oldland Common branch of SOGS has run a major campaign to save the land. Bitton councillor Mike Thomas, whose ward includes the Oldland Common scheme, said: "Almost 2,000 individual letters of objection shows the strength of feeling. If the planning inspector overturns the refusal, all areas of green belt in South Gloucestershire could be vulnerable." http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/D-Day-Bristol-green-belt-homes-inquiry/article-1573539-detail/article.html
 

BANES

Planning tomorrow today: Extension to deadline
 

The deadline for residents to give comments about Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Core Strategy is now extended because high levels of interest in the issue.

Given the importance in shaping the future of Bath & North East Somerset the Council has decided that it will extend the period within which it will accept comments on the Core Strategy spatial options document to mid-January. Any comments will therefore need to be submitted by 15th January 2010. It is hoped that this additional time will assist those wishing to make comments and further increase public involvement in the Core Strategy preparation process.

The Core Strategy contains the Council’s ideas for the future of the area over the next two decades, including how to address tough challenges faced by the area, like the need to provide more affordable homes, improving the availability of modern flexible office accommodation, delivering necessary infrastructure and one of the biggest issues facing the planet – climate change and reducing the community carbon footprint.

Residents can also read a four-page feature in the current Winter 2009 edition of Connect Magazine being delivered to homes across the district right now. This can also be accessed online at www.bathnes.gov.uk

People can long-on to www.bathnes.gov.uk/corestrategy or call 01225 477548 or write to Planning Policy Team, Trimbridge House, Trim Street , Bath BA1 2DP , or email planning_policy@bathnes.gov.uk to find out more. The document can also be read at all libraries in the district and at reception areas in Trmbridge House, Bath ; Riverside , Keynsham; Hollies, Midsomer Norton.


Bristol -  

Cornwall

TRELAWNEY ALLIANCE
MAKING WAVES CALLS BY TRELAWNEY ALLIANCE FOR A COMPLETE OVERHAUL OF PLANNING LAWS APPEAR TO HAVE REGISTERED WITH CORNWALL COUNCIL.

The Planning process will now be investigated by yet another Government quango !

THIS WAS ANNOUNCED BY COUNCILLOR GRAHEME HICKS ON RADIO CORNWALL. A LINK TO THIS BROADCAST IS ATTACHED.

Cllr. Hicks is concerned that members of the planning committees are not taking the advice of the planners, but may be using common sense and listening to the electorate instead!

LETTERS TO THE LEADER OF CORNWALL COUNCIL AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE SENT BY TA WERE FORWARDED TO MEMBERS LAST WEEK AS WAS A COPY OF THE LETTER TO THE PLANNING INSPECTORATE.

THE PLANNING INSPECTORATE HAVE ALREADY BEGUN AN INVESTIGATION INTO OUR COMPLAINTS. PLANNING COUNCILLORS NEED TO LISTEN TO LOCAL PEOPLE.

WE NEED TO BUILD HOMES FOR LOCAL NEEDS NOT FOR 82% INWARD MIGRATION THAT UN-ELECTED PLANNING OFFICERS ARE TRYING TO FOIST ON US. FOR MORE NEWS AND INFORMATION VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.TRELAWNEY-ALLIANCE.ORG

Bert Biscoe is arranging a meeting of all interested parties and residents associations unhappy about mass building in Cornwall, to be held on 8th October in Truro.

North Somerset
19th Feb 2010 - 2000 letter petition delivered.

Ashton Vales plans for "town-green" status have been submitted. Comments to be recieved by 1st Feb 2010.http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/Deadline-objections-town-green-bid-stop-Bristol-City-s-new-stadium/article-1576034-detail/article.html

- Ashton Park’s outline plan’s have been submitted – see http://www.ashton-park.co.uk/ for details – we’ll be asking for objections when the application is registered and we have a deadline from North Somerset. See also.
 

Our 10 Downing Street epetition in respect of Bristol City Football Club’s plans to build a new stadium on green belt land, has leapt into the top 20% of all live petitions in its first week! However, we need to redouble our efforts if we are to achieve figures which will grab media interest, let alone affect Bristol City Council’s decision makers. So get networking, spread the web address via your campaign groups and get more people to sign up to the epetition.

Swindon Council are also looking at a legal challenge.

Consultation on the plans for Flax Bourton – details here.

Innsworth Inquiry adjourned – Rather worryingly, the Inquiry was adjourned whilst the Homes and Communities Agency get ready to give evidence – there is a national pot of money that has become available for “stalled” schemes involving affordable homes – let’s hope this isn’t considered one of them.

Ashton Vale get a letter printed in the Daily Mail

Speak out to save Greenbelt, say Longford homes campaigners

Baker Associates are about to submit their plans for Dundry

The Innsworth Inquiry felt very fair and even handed the public had a chance to have their say.

Housing proposals for 500 houses at Failand are now on the table.

Wiltshire
Swindon is preparing for a Judicial Review or Legal Challenge on publication.

On September 3rd there is a grand committee meeting of all the MP's in the region they get to ask questions of the Regional Minister (Jim Knight) and then have a debate. When we have the new timeline confirmed we will decide after soliciting your opinions on which questions it is best to lobby MP's to ask, and who by

Public Inquiry into Innsworth

Westbury bypass campaigners win their battle against badly planned road.

Plans for the stadium on green belt land at Ashton Gate are available on the council's website.

The Stadium an excellent article by the Bristol Blogger shows what we're up against. Who will look after our greenbelt for us?

National News

CALA HOMES FIGHTS BACK
CALA lawyers launch fresh legal challenge Domenic Donatantonio, Planning, 19 November 2010 The lawyers behind the successful legal challenge to the scrapping of regional strategies (RS) have commenced proceedings against the government's insistence that the ruling changes little. Mr Justice Sales ruled in the High Court last week that CALA Homes has been successful in its challenge to overturn the revocation of the RSs, saying that primary legislation should have been introduced. On taking office in May, communities secretary Eric Pickles wrote to local authorities to announce his intention to rapidly abolish RSs and instructing them to start devising their own housing targets. Despite last week's judgment, DCLG chief planner Steve Quartermain wrote to councils and the Planning Inspectorate insisting that they have regard to this material consideration in any decisions. The government also confirmed that RS abolition will feature in the decentralisation and localism bill. But now CALA's legal advisers Macfarlanes is challenging Quartermain's letter. "CALA successfully sought judicial review of the secretary of state's unlawful revocation of regional strategies to restore clarity to the planning system," said head of planning Ian Ginbey. "Regrettably, the government's response is that it changes little and that regard should still be had to its intention to abolish regional strategies. This has again given rise to confusion and we are seeking a court declaration that its intention to revoke RSs is not a material consideration." He added: "We are also seeking that the letter from Quartermain be withdrawn pending final determination of the claim or a stay of their effect until that time." Law firm TLT's head of planning and environment Katherine Evans agreed that abolition of RSs could take time: "Unless the government provides transitional measures there will continue to be huge uncertainty."