In March 2023 the PC was made aware that Lochailort Investments Ltd had started legal proceedings against Mendip District Council.
Lochailort was challenging MDC’s decision to publish a policies map showing land known as NSP1 outside of the development limit for Norton St Philip and within the countryside. They contended that this decision was unlawful and the designation of the land for housing under allocation NSP1 should be shown on the Revised Policies Map as being struck through, so as to make clear that it is currently ‘white land’, that is land without any designation in the adopted development plan.
The PC was not named as an “Interested Party” in the case. It considered however that this could best be dealt with by the application to amend the Order in the previous JR, as permitted by para 8 of the Order (here). The PC’s view – with which the LPA agreed – was that the corrected version of the Policies Map properly and correctly implemented the intention of the Judgment of December 2022.
The PC thus submitted a “liberty application” to vary the original Order in line with the above.
The Judge, Mr Justice Holgate (who had presided over the 2022 JR into MDC’s decision to adopt LPP2) decided to hold hearings on both the Liberty Application and substantive JR on the same day in the High Court. The Hearing took place on 29 June 2023.
Judgment was handed down on 14th July 2023, with the case dismissed. The Judge concluded
“…. I conclude that the action taken by MDC to alter the development limits on the Adopted Policies Map cannot be criticised as unlawful in any way. It simply addressed the unlawful consequences of the unlawful allocation of NSP1 and lay well within the ambit of MDC’s powers as explained by the Curt of Appeal in Fox and by Lang J in Bond. Furthermore, I agree with Mr. Forsdick that that action accords with the order dated 16 December 2022, as well as the judgment to which it gave effect.
The application by Lochailort for judicial review is dismissed.“
Permission to Appeal was refused.
Welcome to the website for the proposed Norton St Philip Neighbourhood Plan. 