Changes proposed to planning rules in Carmarthenshire

A cross-party scrutiny working group has proposed a number of recommendations for changes to planning enforcement in Carmarthenshire.
The final report of the Community Scrutiny Task and Finish Group will now go before the Executive Board at its next meeting on Monday, July 28.
The politically balanced group was chaired by Cllr. Anthony Jones and included co-opted members from the Planning Committee.
Cllr. Jones said: “Planning is one of the most sensitive and potentially contentious services that we provide.
“The current planning enforcement protocol had not been reviewed since 2005 so it was high time it was looked at again.
“We wanted to produce a protocol that provided clarity around different planning activities as well as our approach to and how we prioritise enforcement activity.
“The group worked well together, with the support of officers, there was complete cross- party agreement, and we have come forward with a number of recommendations which we hope will achieve these aims.”
A total of 23 recommendations include more training for councillors; clear priorities for enforcement; the production of a plain language guide; encourage the Welsh Government to introduce temporary stop notices; give detailed reasons as to why formal enforcement action is taken; including a number of recommendations to protect staff who work alone.