On a successful claim for judicial review of a decision by a local planning authority (“LPA”) to grant planning permission, the court will not substitute it own judgment on the planning merits for that of the LPA. If it exercises its discretion to quash the decision, the matter will be remitted to the LPA for reconsideration. The LPA is then entitled to come to a fresh decision in accordance with the ruling of the court. Clearly, it must always be open to a LPA, once a claim for judicial review has been issued, to take note of the grounds relied upon and – if advised that they are likely to be successful – to invite a fresh planning application from the developer.
In R (on the application of Lanner Parish Council) v Cornwall Council (see PP 2013/162) the appellant had applied unsuccessfully to quash the decision of the LPA to grant planning permission for a development of 25 affordable homes. It appealed against the decision of the High Court to the Court of Appeal.
The Court of Appeal concluded – on the basis of the planning officer’s report, the minutes of the planning committee meeting and the written reasons for granting planning permission – that the planning committee had misunderstood policy H20 of a draft district local plan. (All parties accepted that this was a material consideration.) The development proposals were clearly not in accordance with policy H20, but the planning committee had treated them as conforming with it. The Court of Appeal held that the grant of planning permission was thereby flawed.
However, the LPA had in the meantime granted a fresh planning permission to the developer for a development of 25 affordable homes on the same site. It was clear on this occasion that the planning committee had been fully and properly informed about the effect of policy H20, and had exercised its discretion to grant planning permission, despite non-compliance with it, as it was entitled to do. This was a matter of planning judgment.
On that basis, the Court of Appeal declined to exercise its discretion to quash the earlier flawed planning permission. Despite the fact that it was originally liable to be quashed, it was no longer operative and the court will not make a quashing order that serves no useful purpose.
John Martin
