An Isle of Wight did not breach the Isle of Wight Council’s code of conduct by submitting a retrospective planning application, it has been determined.
The council’s monitoring officer said the rules only apply when a councillor is acting in their official capacity, and not as a private individual.
Earlier this week an application, submitted by Cllr Clare Mosdell, was approved, to regularise her stables and add an all-weather menage.
Build double approved size
Last year, permission was granted to build the stables to a certain size but the final footprint of the block was almost double that approved.
Cllr Mosdell had previously said they could not build what had been granted because of land levels, run-off water and flooding so a retrospective application was submitted.
Based on planning merits
At the planning committee on Tuesday, councillors stressed they were not judging Cllr Mosdell’s behaviour but the application based on planning merits.
Advice, however, was sought from the councillor’s monitoring officer, Chris Potter, by the chair of planning, Cllr Michael Lilley, after members raised concerns about the retrospective application and whether there had been a breach of code of conduct.
Code of conduct rules
The code of conduct, a set of rules outlining the responsibilities for councillors, Mr Potter said, only applies when a councillor is acting in their official capacity, and not as a private individual.
He said,
“No councillor will have breached the code of conduct when they undertake unauthorised development in their purely private capacity.”
When debating the application, Cllr Geoff Brodie said the application was only coming before the committee because the applicant was a councillor and had the same application been from Joe Bloggs, Island resident, it would not have been up to the committee to determine.
Brodie: Always going to be vulnerable to keyboard warriors
Cllr Brodie also said he had a reasonable understanding retrospective planning applications are not unusual on the Island.
He said,
“When you are an elected member you are always going to be vulnerable to keyboard warriors of the Island, anonymous people who want to hang you at the earliest opportunity.
“The bottom line is we are a planning committee, we are not a standards committee or the monitoring officer. We have got a straightforward planning application on a retrospective basis, we have been given advice from the monitoring officer … we must not judge this on the code of conduct.”
Alliance: Understand the majority of the feelings expressed
Commenting on the application, the Alliance Group said they had noted the many public comments made about the decision of the planning committee
A spokesperson said,
“We very much understand the majority of the feelings expressed, however, the application was decided in accordance with the rules and policies currently laid down.
“If the committee had done otherwise that would itself have been a breach of rules and led to an appeal being launched, with every chance of success.”
Hastings: “I think the news should move on”
Cllr Steve Hastings, the leader of the Conservative Group within County Hall, said it was a perfectly normal and legal planning procedure and that the application was submitted straightaway by the applicant, it was not an enforcement issue.
Cllr Hastings watched the meeting from the public gallery and said he has written to Cllr Brodie to thank him for his common sense and planning acumen, “which is more than can be said for some members.”
He said,
“This application has now been determined and I think the news should move on to more important matters like the new administration’s Corporate Plan, which I look forward to being published so that at Corporate Scrutiny we can build a workplan around it.”
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is part of. Read here to find about more about how that scheme works on the Island. Some alterations and additions may have been made by News OnTheWight. Ed
