Councillors weren’t seething with anger’

IN response to a story in the paper last week entitled Councillors Force Law Change , I was surprised to read how the committee meeting was reported. Reading the article, it would appear that all councillors, including myself, were seething with anger at

IN response to a story in the paper last week entitled 'Councillors Force Law Change', I was surprised to read how the committee meeting was reported.

Reading the article, it would appear that all councillors, including myself, were seething with anger at the Planning Department for the decisions which they make on behalf of the district council.

As chairman of the meeting, I recall the vast majority of the councillors on the Planning Committee actually praising the work of the planning officers. We went on to have a detailed and useful discussion about the best way to deal with major applications as they come into the planning system.

The outcome was officers committed to finding new ways to highlight the significant applications which they receive and councillors all made the pledge to study in far greater detail the weekly planning list when it is published. I summed the discussion up by saying we all had to be more alert when it comes to dealing with such applications for the benefit of the district.

The emphasis which I took from the meeting was that we were all going to make the effort to work closer together and find ways of improving still further the service which we provide.

I think it was a pity the meeting wasn't reported more accurately as it has given the impression that the councillors were at war with the officers, when nothing could be further from the truth.

PHILIP READ

Chairman of the Planning Committee

East Cambridgeshire District Council