longstanding East Devon district councillor is calling upon the authority to ensure a controversial application by a former councillor to lift a restrictive planning condition on his farmhouse, is heard in public.
Ottery St Mary councillor of 20 years, Roger Giles is demanding that consideration of former Feniton and Buckerell ward member, Graham Brown's application must be heard at a meeting of the council's Development Management Committee, rather than be decided between planning officers and the committee chairman at a Chairman's Delegation meeting in private.
Cllr Giles said that as yet, his request has not been agreed to by the authority.
As previously reported by the Echo, Mr Brown – a planning consultant who resigned from the district council last year after being caught on camera boasting to undercover reporters that he could secure planning permission for a fee – wants to lift a condition which restricts the use of Ware Farm to those employed in agriculture.
Ware Farm was recently advertised online for £1.55m on the property website Rightmove, but withdrawn by the estate agents.
The lifting of the restriction could mean the value of the house could increase, the meeting he heard.
He claims he has not been using the house to conduct agriculture – a condition of the original planning permission in 2000.
He is seeking a "certificate of lawfulness" for the property because he claims not farming the land means he has been breaching a planning condition for more than a decade.
Following a meeting of the planning committee, Ottery St Mary Town Council has written to the district authority with their concerns regarding Mr Brown's evidence including that it is "contradictory".
Cllr Giles explained that council procedure is that any applications by members are discussed by the committee.
He argues that although Mr Brown is no longer a serving councillor, as the certificate of Lawfulness application relates to a time span when he was, it should be treated in the same way.
"This is a very controversial application, about which there is considerable public interest," he said. "I have very great concerns that the planning system might substantially reward someone for flouting a planning condition.
"How the council deals with this matter is crucially important.
"For much of the 10 year period in question, Mr Brown was not only a serving district councillor but also a very prominent councillor in planning matters – he was deputy leader, he was environment portfolioholder, and he was chairman of the Local Development Framework Panel."
He added: "In the interests of openness and transparency this application must be decided in the public domain.
"Not to do so would be an affront to British principals of justice being seen to be done.
"And not to do so would result in reputational damage to the council."
