Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council (19 019 863)
Category : Planning > Planning applications
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 24 Mar 2020
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about delay by the Council in determining her planning application. This is because it would be reasonable for Mrs X to appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.
The complaint
- The complainant, Mrs X, complains the Council has delayed in deciding their planning application. She says he cannot book builders to proceed with the development and is suffering financial loss.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a government minister. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(b))
- The Planning Inspector acts on behalf of the responsible Government minister. The Planning Inspector considers appeals about:
- delay – usually over eight weeks – by an authority in deciding an application for planning permission
- a decision to refuse planning permission
- conditions placed on planning permission
- a planning enforcement notice.
How I considered this complaint
- I reviewed Mrs X’s complaint and the Council’s responses. I shared my draft decision with Mrs X and considered her comments.
What I found
- Mrs X applied for planning permission from the Council in 2019. She complains the Council failed to determine the application within the statutory time limit and feels it did not treat her application fairly.
- The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. The law provides Mrs X with the right to appeal on the grounds of non-determination (delay) and if she is unhappy with the time taken by the Council to decide her application it would be reasonable for her to follow this process.
Final decision
- The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because it would be reasonable for Mrs X to appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman