One of the functions of the Review Board - the Council’s scrutiny committee - on which I sit, is to conduct a bi-monthly review of the progress officers are making with regard to taking enforcement action against those who have been found to be in violation of planning laws.
Whilst the vast majority of those who are found to have broken the rules are all too happy to admit their mistakes and take appropriate action to rectify their errors, there is a small minority who are adept at navigating the minefield of planning law for years and years.
I was shocked to learn that under the present system, if a man or woman were found to be in violation of enforcement regulations and were able to string out the appeals process out for several years, or twelve years in the case of one enforcement notice we discussed this evening (a fairly easy thing to do given the potential appeals one is able to take to the High Court, European Court…), by transferring the property to a partner or friend, they would ensure any such action would fall, the enforcement action starting again from scratch under the new owner. Six months down the line, there would be nothing to stop the friend or partner transferring the property back into the hands of the previous owner, again causing the enforcement procedure to fall.
Whilst I am still unsure as to the best way to fix this broken system, it is clear to me that we can no longer tolerate a situation that allows people to effectively stick two fingers up at the planning process. Perhaps, for example, central government could explore a change in the law to outlaw the transfer of ownership of any property currently in violation of an enforcement notice until such a time that the property is in compliance with their local Council’s regulations?
Please do let me know if you have any thoughts.
