A week or so ago, the High Court held that parts of the East of England Plan, being the region's Regional Spatial Strategy ("RSS"), had fallen foul of certain requirements for Strategic Environmental Assessment.
Perhaps surprisingly, this is the first of its type of challenge. We have already seen quite a number of court cases relating to Environmental Impact Assessment requirements and I wonder whether this case will kick-start a further type of environmental challenge.
In this case, the challenge was brought about by local authorities whose housing figures would be affected by the RSS - seemingly the Secretary of State had failed to properly consider alternatives to the loss of green belt that would inevitably arise if the RSS figures were to be met.
I wonder whether this is a type of challenge that will only ever be brought by local authorities, or whether landowners and developers might pick up on it. There will be many who are potentially 'persons aggreived' and therefore able to bring a challenge under s113 Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 - it would be unfortunate if they all assumed that their local authorities would lanch challenges and that they need not do anything. Is there scope for some sort of partnership here?
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