In a baffling move this Thursday Westminster Conservatives delayed approving half of the recommendations of the Council’s Planning Review, claiming that it wasn’t possible to allow local residents to speak at planning meetings by December as had been originally recommended.

Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Member for Place Shaping and Planning Geoff Barraclough said “It’s embarrassing that six months after the election Westminster’s Conservatives can’t agree to implement their own proposals for reforming the widely discredited planning process. Why have they failed to properly consult local amenity societies before now? The Council’s failure is being used as an excuse to drag their feet on delivering the reform Westminster urgently needs.

Most disturbingly, the Tories still have no plan for how they will let residents speak at planning committee meetings. This was a key proposal in the their manifesto but it’s clear that, like Brexit, the Council Leadership hadn’t given any thought about how to make it work in practice.  Westminster Labour has already put forward its detailed plan and we’d be happy to meet Cllr Nickie Aiken anytime to discuss our proposals.”