Susanna Gillman,
Planning,
11 January 2008
Cornish district councils set to merge into a unitary authority should focus on their area action plans (AAPs), Cornwall County Council has suggested.
The advice comes after Carrick District Council's core strategy was given an unsound verdict last month, but was told to continue its AAP for Truro.
The county council and the six district councils are due to become one authority next year. Restructuring has already started and a joint committee to take on spatial planning powers is set to be proposed next week. Its responsibilities will include devising a single core strategy.
County council policy manager Steve Havers, who is co-leading the restructure, said: "It does pull the plugs on local planning work. But we can draw on what has already been done."
Carrick and Restormel Borough Council are the only two authorities to have reached the examination stage but both strategies have been turned down. The others are at earlier steps in the process. The 2004 structure plan and regional spatial strategy will steer AAP work in the meantime, Havers explained.
Carrick's inspector criticised a lack of detail over housing and its consultation process. Planning policy team leader Martin Cookman said he was surprised because the inspector did not raise these concerns earlier.
"We had government office support for what we were doing but the inspector felt that we did not drill down in sufficient detail for Truro," he said.
