CPRE South East eBulletin. News for September 2011 1 CPRE South East eBulletin THE NPPF AT THE CONSERVATIVE CONFERENCE The Great Planning Row: Days 51 to 70 The Prime Minister the Countryside and Jobs Is the NPPF the Neutrino of Planning Campaigning? In his closing speech to the conference, David Cameron took a firm line that only 9% of land in England is built up and that We should treasure these words. “Crazy”, “madness” and the planning system is holding back economic growth: “double madness – madness compounded by imbecility”. They There’s one more thing. Our businesses need the space to come from CPRE President Bill Bryson venting his frustration grow – literally. That’s one of the reasons we’re reforming our at the draft National Planning Policy Framework in the Sunday planning system. It’s hard to blame local people for opposing Telegraph. Bill Bryson’s forthright commentary was a developments when they get none of the benefits. We’re welcome injection of lively language into a media debate that changing that. If a new manufacturing plant is built in your has at times failed to grasp the passion that people feel about area – your community keeps the business rates. If new homes planning reforms set to bring a wrecking ball to localism and get built – you keep the council tax. This is a localist plan from bulldozers to green fields. If we learn one thing from this a localist party. campaign, it should be that planning can be a populist cause. Now I know people are worried about what this means for This thought brings me to the humble neutrino. So ubiquitous conservation. Let me tell you: I love our countryside and are neutrinos in our everyday lives that millions will pass there’s nothing I would do to put it at risk. But let’s get the through your body as you read this editorial. As esoteric as this balance right. The proportion of land in England that is particle may be, it is hardly headline material. Yet a few weeks currently built up is 9 per cent. Yes, 9 per cent. There are ago, a neutrino that allegedly travelled from Geneva to Grand businesses out there desperate to expand, to hire thousands of Sasso a tad faster than the speed of light made the front pages people – but they’re stuck in the mud of our planning system. around the world. The level of excitement was such that a New Of course we’re open to constructive ideas about how to get Scientist leader claimed: “We are in a new era – of science as a this right. But to those who just oppose everything we’re doing, spectator sport”. my message is this: Take your arguments down to the job It has taken decades for scientists to reach a position where it centre. We’ve got to get Britain back to work (Full speech: stands almost shoulder to shoulder with the arts in our media. http://bit.ly/nLtkHf ). When I started to talk to scientists about communicating their Analysis by planning commentator Andrew Lainton argues science in the early 1990s, most held a view that they were the area is at least 14%, as Cameron seems to have included both misunderstood and incapable of being understood. Few Scotland and Wales and on international definitions is 19% wanted to draw people into the intense excitement that is (http://bit.ly/pj8Kla ). Research by Land Use consultants for CPRE science. So many scientists I met believed that the difficulties in 2007 showed that the visual and noise intrusion associated and obscurities of their subject matter militated against public with built up areas, power grids and communications affects engagement. 50% of England ( http://bit.ly/cprezones ). Things really began to change rapidly with the launch of National Science Week in 1995. The enthusiasm for science Transition Arrangements Promised after communication was accelerated by the discovery (or not) of “Silence of the Plans” fossils on Mars in 1996, and has barely looked back since. Last Saturday, CPRE launched its nationwide campaign on These days, Brian Cox can casually cast the gems of quantum the “Silence of the Plans”, which revealed that 48% of physics towards his audience without fear of their disinterest or planning authorities will not have Core Strategies in place by 1 accusations from colleagues that he is undermining the April next year when the NPPF comes into force. Where plans integrity of the scientific profession. are silent, absent or indeterminate, the presumption in favour of I am not trying to claim that planning will ever generate the sustainable development comes into force and the default same excitement that a humble neutrino can cause, but I am answer is “yes”. Nearly one in five of planning authorities saying it can be a populist cause. Everyone owes a debt to the (17%) are in the ‘red zone’ have not a hope of getting a local National Trust for making the NPPF row a populist crusade plan in place until sometime in 2013 or 2014, and only if they and to Bill Bryson who has uttered the most passionate words keep to time ( http://bit.ly/nppfhell ). of the campaign. There is much we can all learn from the last Previous vague hints at transition arrangements for the new three months of campaigning. The question is where we go planning regime became firm commitments at the Tory from here. How do we consolidate the unprecedented media conference. Citing CPRE research, Planning magazine reports: coverage of planning and turning that into public engagement “Speaking on separate occasions at the Tory Party conference, in planning? both junior planning minister Bob Neill and decentralisation Localism could be a greatest tool in this. Even though the minister Greg Clark said that the government will put in place visionary concept of neighbourhood plans has been weakened transitional arrangements to support councils without an up-to- by the Localism Bill and the draft NPPF, the plans could lead date local plan (£: http://bit.ly/q58Wic ). A report in Building & to a new long term engagement of communities with planning. Building Design is more detailed, saying that Clark said: “It is It will be a long haul. A YouGov poll for the National Trust clear that transition arrangements will be very important, given found that 70% of people said they were “not very likely” or that the purpose is to get councils working to a local plan. It is “not at all likely” to get involved in their neighbourhood plan not the intention of the government to end up in a position and only 4% said they were “very likely” to get involved where local authorities are in any way disadvantaged.” It also (http://bit.ly/nsju4O ). But back in the early 1990s, scientists faced reports Grant Shapps as saying: “We will ensure that there is a a similar long haul and came out on top. Can we? period of time, a transition, for local authorities to have plans Andy Boddington filed and agreed” (£: http://bit.ly/nAwVF9 ). Note on links. We have adopted the £ symbol from Twitter to CLG told Inside Housing that transition arrangements were indicate articles you will generally have to pay to view. something which was ‘out there’ and had been discussed, but were not yet in place ( http://bit.ly/pIY6p5 ). CPRE South East eBulletin. News for September 2011 2 Greg Clark Pledges Excellence and Brownfield First A Selection of Other NPPF News Planning minister Greg Clark gave a bullish speech to the Suburban nation. In the Sunday Telegraph, Bill Bryson conference (full speech: http://bit.ly/ndfTNy ). warned the Coalition against turning England into a suburban Like any family, we will always want the next generation to nation, saying: “Britain still has the most reliably beautiful have more chances than we had, not fewer. This is reason countryside of anywhere in the world. I would hate to be part we’re making reforms to our planning system. Yes, we’re going of the generation that allowed that to be lost… what you don’t to build more homes – but in the right places, and of the right want to do is to take Britain, which has worked well as a quality. We are stewards of a matchless countryside. We want predominantly urban nation, and try to create some new 21st our children – and their children – to be as proud of it as we century suburbia. That’s madness… Especially if your are. And believe me, there is no charity, no campaign, no justification is some kind of temporary boost to the economy. concerned citizen who feels more strongly about cherishing our That’s double madness – madness compounded by imbecility. countryside than we do. So of course, we’ll make use of The Government talks as if the planning system is an brownfield land before greenfield land; we’ll insist on excellent impediment to growth. I would say it stops foolish or greedy design not legotowns; and we’ll make sure that planning people being rapacious to the built environment” decisions are taken by local people who know and love where (http://tgr.ph/nppfbryson ). they live not by those regional bureaucracies or visiting Its Just Plan Crazy. CPRE Horsham and Crawley is among inspectors. The best way to protect the countryside is to make eight groups that have linked with the West Sussex County our towns and cities great places to live. And great places to Times to form the Save Our Sussex Alliance to oppose the work too. Our biggest cities are home to two thirds of our jobs, NPPF ( http://bit.ly/sussexsos ).