Local Development Framework examinations: Planning Inspectorate fee increase

Revised fees for Local Development Framework (LDF) examinations, intended to recover from local planning authorities the cost of providing Inspectors, were introduced on 3 January 2007.

The Planning Inspectorate's previous fees did not reflect the full costs of examining the soundness of Statements of Community Involvement (SCIs) and Development Plan Documents (DPDs) introduced under the new Local Development Frameworks.

The phased increases are designed to strike a balance between achieving Treasury requirements for full recovery as soon as practicable while keeping year-on-year increases to a reasonable figure.

By phasing increases over several years in this way, local planning authorities will have a more stable basis for budgeting over the period.

The phasing increased the daily fee from £679 to £779 for examinations opening on or after 3 January 2007, to £879 for examinations opening on or after 31 March 2007 and to £993 for examinations opening on or after 31 March 2008. Under the new system the examination commences on submission of the SCI/DPD

The fees for LDF examinations were set under the Town and Country Planning (Costs of Inquiries etc) (Standard Daily Amount) Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/3227), which came into force on 3 January 2007, following consultation with planning bodies (the Local Government Association, the Planning Officers' Society, the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.     

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Roger Milne

9 February 2007