Agenda item

As detailed in the recommendations.

Having previously declared a personal and prejudicial interest, Councillor Healey was moved into the virtual lobby.

Councillor Bithell introduced the report and explained that all local planning authorities in Wales were required to produce, and keep under review, a Local Development Plan (LDP).  The report set out the culmination of work to prepare and adopt an LDP for Flintshire.

The Flintshire LDP would be the primary strategy and policy document against which the Council would make decisions on development proposals going forward.  It was a sound and sustainable Plan that included a requirement to consider the ‘Placemarking’ agenda and presented a positive approach to managing the future growth that Flintshire was going to experience.

The policies and proposals within the LDP addressed the County’s need for new homes, jobs, infrastructure, and community facilities to support economic growth and raise standards of living.  In planning for growth, he appreciated that it inevitably involved making some difficult decisions, particularly on releasing land for development in certain areas.  Councillors and planners in the past had been brave and bold to make those difficult decisions.

The key stages of the LDP preparation were outlined in the report.  The examination of the LDP commenced on 11^th November 2020 and Hearing Sessions took place over an eight month period concluding on 23^rd November 2021.  During the examination the Council had to consider and respond to a significant new issue that arose with the introduction by National Resource Wales (NRW) on stricter new targets for the levels of phosphates permitted to enter SAC protected rivers, and in the case of the LDP the Bala Lake and River Dee Special Area of Conservation.  Inspectors were provided with sufficient evidence to allow them to conclude the Examination of the LDP.

At Cabinet on 31^st May 2022 Members approved for public consultation the ‘Matters Arising Changes’ (MACs to the Deposit LDP.  The consultation concluded on 29^th July 2022 with approximately 122 representations being duly made.  All comments were forwarded to the Inspectors for their consideration.  In accordance with statutory obligations the comments were not considered by the Council.

The Inspectors had now submitted their final Report which was appended to the Cabinet report and the Examination had closed.  The Report found the LDP to be sound and subject to the binding nature of it, the plan would need to be adopted by County Council.

Councillor Bithell thanked his colleagues on Planning Strategy Group (PSG) for all of their hard work on the LDP.

The Chief Officer (Planning, Environment and Economy) thanked all officers involved, particularly for the way in which things had been required to have been carried out in a different way.  The report would be submitted to County Council the following week and if approved, a new suite of policies would be created that Members would need training on.  The Council, if approved, would then have the opportunity to have an input into the Strategic Development Plan.

Councillor Roberts thanks officers and Members for the tremendous amount of work undertaken.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the Flintshire Local Development Plan (Final version at appendix 2 – as amended by the binding changes set out in the Inspectors Report) be adopted as the new development plan for the Flintshire administrative area;

(b)       That the Adoption Statement (appendix 3), Final Sustainability Appraisal including Equalities Impact Assessment (appendix 4) and Habitat Regulations Assessment (appendix 5) be approved; and

(c)        That the Chief Officer (Planning, Environment and Economy) be authorised to make outstanding typographical, grammatical, presentational, or factual amendments to the Flintshire Local Development Plan and supporting documents prior to its final publication.