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Draft South Pennine Moors SPA/SAC Planning Framework Supplementary Planning Document

Representation ID: 25507

Received: 24/03/2021

Respondent: Peter Bryson

Representation Summary:

Current consultation still refers to documents produced in May 2016: especially Policy SC8 and the policy basis for the SPD.

Council has not incorporated into their proposals all of Natural England's comments (made in June 2016 & February 2019) In particular, it has not incorporated into either Policy SC8 or the SPD legally binding advice from Natural England.

In 2019, Natural England advised Bradford Council that Habitats Regulation's policies have hardened up in the past three years. However nothing has been done to change SC8 to incorporate this law change. Therefore, this SPD is simply out-of-date and based on the wrong laws.

As Policy SC8 has not been revised since May 2016, this current South Pennine Moors SPA/SAC Planning Framework SPD is not compliant with what Natural England have said is now legal under the Habitats Regulations

Accordingly Natural England believe that this SPD is illegal under the Habitats Regulations.

Full text:

My comments on the South Pennine Moors SPD Document
There were a very large number of shenanigans with regards to developer CEG, and also their lawyers Freeth's, rewriting Bradford Council’s Policy SC8 back in May 2016 (note: produced concurrently with the public hearings into the Core Strategy at Saltaire in May 2016).

Therefore the current 2021 consultation is still referring to the documents which were produced back in in May 2016: especially Policy SC8 and thus the policy basis for this SPD. These both assume mitigation of the effects of more development is lawful.

However, Bradford Council has not incorporated into their proposals all of Natural England's comments: those which were made in both June 2016 and Feb 2019.
In particular, Bradford Council have NOT INCORPORATED into either policy SC8 nor this South Pennine Moor SPD document the legally-binding advice from Natural England: namely that Bradford Council have been formally advised that some development sites needed to be avoided: not mitigated. You have also been told that all developments should have a net gain in biodiversity

Furthermore in 2019 (see attached) Natural England advised Bradford Council that Habitats Regulation's policies have hardened up in the past three years. However Bradford has nothing to change SC8 to incorporate this change in the law. Therefore this latest SPD is simply out-of-date and bnbased on the wrong laws.

Therefore as Bradford Council policy SC8 has not been revised since May 2016, this current South Pennine Moors SPA/SAC Planning Framework Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is not compliant with what Natural England have said is now legal under the Habitats Regulations

Accordingly Natural England believe that this South Pennine Moors SPA/SAC Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is illegal under the Habitats Regulations!