Policy SS2: The Role of York’s Green Belt
Murton Parish Council reaffirms its support for Policy SS2 recognising its primary purpose is ‘to preserve the setting and the special character of York’.
We also recognise that the explanation on page 31, paragraphs 3.13-3.15, page 31 and together with Sections 8, 9 and 10, will be invaluable in guiding the Parish Council with planning decisions and recommendations.
However, we are extremely disappointed that there is no mention of enforcement and we want to draw attention to National Planning Policy Framework Section 207 which states that ‘Effective enforcement is important as a means of maintaining public confidence in the planning system’. Exactly!
This City has numerous examples where enforcement should have been carried out in he Green Belt (we have 3 outstanding at the moment)and we believe that all the proposals in the plan depend on implementation. Our own recent experiences suggest that more resources (and a greater will) for enforcement are badly needed.
We are therefore disappointed to find that the NPPF Section 207 is not developed in the Local Plan. It avoids giving ‘a local enforcement plan to manage enforcement proactively, in a way that is appropriate to their area’. This is, for many parish councils, a grave disappointment.