14 September 2009

The 'Plan Led' System is Not Delivering

An MPA assessment of the operation of the ‘plan led’ elements of the mineral planning system indicates that it is simply not delivering. The introduction of the ‘plan led’ system in 2004 was supposed to improve operation and certainty for all interested parties.

Under the “improved” system, local authorities with minerals responsibilities should have produced new Mineral Development Frameworks by the end of 2007. In practice, an astonishing 81% of mineral planning authorities in England have yet to produce the first substantive part of Mineral Development Frameworks, Mineral Core Strategies, with no imminent completion date in prospect.

This failure to deliver means that the great majority of mineral planning authorities are operating with out of date plans, providing mineral operators with little confidence and even less certainty about the operation of the system. Annual replenishment rates for aggregates are typically around 60% raising the prospects of localized supply shortfalls over the longer term.

This situation is being exacerbated by what appears to be an inconsistent approach by the planning inspectorate with regard to the interpretation and application of national mineral planning policy.

The net result is an increasingly slow and hugely uncertain plan making process in which allocations of land for mineral extraction are becoming increasingly difficult to secure.

MPA CEO Nigel Jackson commented: “The ‘plan led’ system in England is no longer fit for purpose and has failed to deliver the certainty that was promised.

“The process is characterized by excessive delays which are making it increasingly difficult for mineral operators to plan for the future. With no improvement in sight, the only solution is a comprehensive and independent review to identify how planning can function in a reasonable and timely manner to enable the minerals industry to meet the future demands of the economy and the construction industry.”

ENDS