Perth and Kinross councillor calls for urgent review of national planning policy on retail developments
The Planning and Placemaking Committee convener believes the current policy on retail developments "lacks coherence" and risks "stifling competition"
Perth and Kinross Council's (PKC) planning convener has written to the Scottish Government saying there is an "urgent need" for a review of national planning policy regarding retail.
SNP councillor Ian Massie - who wrote to Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee on behalf of PKC's Planning and Placemaking Committee - said the current policy "lacks coherence" and "will not strengthen town centre High Streets".
Cllr Massie's committee requested he write the letter after councillors approved a new Lidl supermarket on Perth's Crieff Road, going against the council officers' recommendation of refusal which was based on national policy.
On Wednesday, March 12 councillors voted by nine votes to two to grant Lidl permission to invest £10 million building a second Perth store and creating over 30 jobs.
They rejected council officers' recommendation to refuse the application, arguing the development would give residents "more choice" and supported the National Planning Framework 4's (NPF4) 20-minute neighbourhoods.
The only objector to the application was Tesco, which has a store on the other side of McDiarmid Park from the proposed Lidl site.
At the March meeting, convener Ian Massie pledged to write to Scotland's Public Finance Minister raising the committee's concerns about the conflicting national planning policy.
In response to a request from the Local Democracy Reporting Service, PKC this week shared both Cllr Massie's letter and the response he received from Ivan McKee MSP.
In his letter, Cllr Massie said the current policy could result in "stifling competition".
Referring to the committee's decision over the Lidl application, he wrote: "The officers' recommendation was for refusal on the grounds that it did not meet Policy 28: (a) and (c) as it was not located in an existing city, town or local centre, nor was it in an edge of centre area, or an allocated site within the LDP; (b) was not applicable as it did not meets the terms of (a); and also (c) Small scale neighbourhood development because the proposal could not be classed as small scale.
"Whilst the committee agreed the criteria for Policy 28 (a) and (c) had not been met they went against officers' advice and granted permission stating that the application should be supported because it would provide over 30 jobs in the local area, help families on limited income afford more with what income they have and aligns with the Scottish Government's approach to 20-minute neighbourhoods , as outlined through Policy 15 of NPF4."
He called for planning policy to meet the "specific needs of our communities". The Perth City North ward councillor added: "Currently, the framework for Policy 28 lacks coherence on several crucial aspects, including the balance between High Street regeneration, out-of-town developments, and the promotion of sustainable practices within retail. However fundamentally, there is the lack of a specific reference to what floorspace thresholds should be deemed to define what is small scale neighbourhood development. "Unless there is an early review of the retail policy of NPF4 the likelihood is that the current policy will result in the planning system in Scotland stifling competition in this sector. This will favour those operators who secured consents for out-of-town centre sites over the last 20 years to the detriment of newer and possibly more innovative operators. It will not strengthen town centre High Streets. This is not 'good planning'. "
Ivan McKee thanked Cllr Massie for his letter and said the intent of the national planning policy was "to encourage, promote and facilitate retail investment to the most sustainable locations that are most accessible by a range of sustainable transport modes".
The Minister for Public Finance said there were a "range of factors" which need to be considered in planning assessments and there were no plans to review the policy.
Mr McKee said: " There is no scheduled review of NPF4 at this time, however it is helpful to have your input on the effectiveness of NPF4 policies and I am grateful to you for sharing your thoughts and experiences with us."
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