Council Leader, Cllr Peter Fleming, said:
“We are clearly disappointed and somewhat bemused by the ruling from the Honourable Mr Justice Dove, especially as the ‘duty to cooperate’, the reason given by the Planning Inspector to reject our plan, is set to be abolished in the Government’s own proposed planning reforms.
“In our opinion, the removal of the ‘duty to cooperate’ is an open admission that it is neither effective nor workable in the local plan making process. However, despite this, we believe we both met and exceeded the requirement. The Government’s own Planning Advisory Service and a number of former senior planning inspectors also supported this position.
“Court action is never something we would enter into lightly. But, our plan reflects our communities’ priorities of protecting the rural nature of the District and the Green Belt whilst providing much needed new homes and improved local infrastructure. We will always stand up for the communities we serve.”
“We are reviewing the judgement in detail and considering our options.”
The existing Local Plan, with all its current protections, will continue to be used to help decide planning applications until a new plan is agreed.