RTPI sees red over lack of planners on Scottish planning review panel
The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Scotland has voiced dismay that the independent panel announced last week by the Scottish Government to review the planning system does not have a chartered planner on it.
Pam Ewen, RTPI Scotland convener said: “While the members of the panel bring a lot of expertise, I am astonished and very disappointed that there is not a planner on the panel with recent practical experience of the planning system.
“The success of the review will depend upon knowledge and expertise of how the planning system works from the inside as well as the outside.”
The RTPI has written to planning minister Alex Neill requesting that a chartered planner plays a role in an advisory capacity.
The institute’s concern surfaced after Neill announced an independent panel to conduct what was described as a “game-changing” review of Scotland’s planning system. Its role is to bring together ideas for “a quicker, more accessible and efficient” planning process.
The three-person panel includes representatives of Planning Aid Scotland and the Scottish Property Federation.
It will examine issues such as development planning, housing delivery, infrastructure development, and resourcing and community engagement.
It will be led by Crawford Beveridge, who chairs the Scottish government’s Council of Economic Advisers. The panel is due to report back in spring 2016.
Roger Milne
Planning Portal Blog 