Post by Dr Ashley Bowes

👨‍⚖️ 👨‍⚖️ Update on Oxford Local Plan injunction ... 👉 The Council has agreed to take the question of submission to examination back to Full Council. 👉 The injunction restraining submission to examination remains in place for the original January resolution and any further resolution which fails to take into account the product of the Reg.18 and 19 consultations (see the consent Order below). It is important to say that Oxford City Council disputed whether Regulation 8 Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004 required the Reg.19 consultation responses to be taken into account on submission, arguing that it only covered adoption. The Court has not ruled on that question and there is a diversity of industry opinion on the point however ... if you are thinking of asking your Full Council to submit a Plan to examination before the Reg.19 consultation has taken place, bear these points in mind: 👉 Reg.8 of the 2004 Regulations establishes a statutory prohibition on certain steps in plan making, before taking into account the product of the Regulation 19 consultation. 👉 Holgate J held that Reg.8 applied to both submission and adoption in Flaxby Park [2020] EWHC 3204 (Admin) at [198]. 👉 He might have been wrong but if he was, that would mean Reg.8 only required consideration of the consultation responses (and indeed the Sustainability Appraisal itself) on adoption. 👉 Ask yourself, whether that would fairly reflect the objective of integrated decision taking in the SEA Directive? 👉 If not, can Reg.8 be read so that it does reflect it? Can it fairly be said that submission of a local plan to examination is: "[submission] to the legislative procedure for the purpose of its adoption"? 👉 Only the Full Council can (i) authorise submission of a plan to examination and (ii) adopt a plan after examination. 👉 Mould J found that it was arguable (and raised a serious issue to be tried) whether the Council should have taken account of the consultation responses before submission (and not just on adoption). 👉 Does the time saved by not taking the Plan to Full Council post Reg.19 outweigh the risk of an injunction restraining submission? A pleasure to act for the Claimants in this interesting case, instructed by Lisa Foster and Adele G. at Richard Buxton Solicitors. #Planning #Housing #NPPF #LocalPlans #Development