"But this looks like they have put a point in their manifesto and are now doing it without having thought about the consequences. This is going to be a ludicrous way of taking planning decisions.”
The council has scrapped three regional planning committees which decided residential development applications. Under the plan, which will be reviewed in six months’ time, civil servants will have more power to take decisions about some applications.
Helen Coomb, cabinet member for planning, said the move would save £45,000 a year. She said: “Over the last few years there has been a reduction in the number of regional planning committees needed, and this means there is much less need for them.”
