Environmental campaigner, Lady Dido Berkeley, has renewed her bid to block plans for a residential and office development in Mortlake High Street, Mortlake, London SW14.
Lady Berkeley, co-ordinator of Thamesbank, an independent organisation that aims to promote community-led, sustainable regeneration of the River Thames corridor, has objected to a scheme to build a block of flats and offices on a site at 77 Mortlake High Street.
She claims that the scheme did not comply with environmental impact regulations.
However, her challenge was rejected by a DETR inspector and that decision was backed in the High Court by Deputy Judge Duncan Ouseley QC.
Now Lady Berkeley has launched an Appeal Court challenge to that decision.
Eleanor Sharpston QC, counsel for Lady Berkeley, argued before the Appeal Court that the judge was wrong to find that an application for an environmental impact assessment had not been made to the Secretary of State.
She claimed that Lady Berkeley had, at the inquiry, asked the Secretary of State to require an environmental impact assessment by way of a submission to the Secretary of States employee, the inspector.
It was argued that a representation to the inspector was a representation to the Secretary of State, particularly where the Secretary of State was asked to take action.
However, Richard Drabble QC, counsel for the Secretary of State, said that the proposed schemes were of a relatively minor nature and did not meet the criteria for an environmental impact assessment.
Backing the Secretary of States stance, Anthony Dinkin QC, counsel for developer Berkeley Homes, said the applications before the inspector were way below the relevant thresholds. “The site is 0.19 ha compared to a threshold of 0.5 ha, and the schemes proposed 28 and 32 flats compared with the Secretary of States guideline of 1,000 dwellings”, he said.
The hearing continues.
Berkeley v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions and others Queen’s Bench Division (Schiemann and Kay LJJ and Sir Murray Stuart-Smith) 14 June 2001.
Eleanor Sharpston QC and Richard Harwood (instructed by Richard Buxton, of Cambridge) appeared for the appellant; Richard Drabble QC and James Maurici (instructed by the Treasury Solicitor) appeared for the first defendant; Anthony Dinkin QC and Richard Ground (instructed by GCL Solicitors, of Guildford) appeared for Berkeley Homes.
PLS News 18/6/01
