15th December 2008

At a meeting of Full Council today a Green amendment to allow individual area committees to decide whether, or not, they wanted to retain planning powers was successful.  This foiled plans by the Labour administration to impose a centralised planning system - a move which is deeply unpopular with residents.

The Green amendment, supported by the LibDems after their own attempt to defer Labours decision failed,  was won by just a single vote thanks to support from the lone IWCA Councillor present. 

 Says Green City Leader Craig Simmons, "Labour want to return to the old, failed system of centralised planning - where anonymous groups of Councillors make decisions about areas they know very little about from the comfort of the Town Hall's ivory towers. This is not the way the Greens want to see the Council run. We want to engage with the community and make decision-making more accessible whilst operating a cost-effective planning system."