Power Relations in the British Development Control System
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Date
1999
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AESOP
Abstract
The operation of development control is the most visible and arguably the most controversial aspect of the British planning system. At its best it has been described as a valuable defender of environmental quality (HMSO 1994) and at its worst it has been exposed as secretive and sometimes corrupt instrument dominated by vested interest (Doncaster DC 1997, Bassetlaw DC 1996 etc.). The increasing complexity of planning applications has compounded the growing disenchantment by the general public at what appears to be a closed and insular arena of planning decision making. Indeed, there has been a significant increase in the level of direct action by the public at major development sites (Newbury 1996, Manchester 1997) which indicates that at least for some, the system is no longer a legitimate instrument in the defence of the public good. Ultimately these new pressures present challenges to both the philosophical rationale of the planning system and the practice of the professional planner. These pressures provide a clear motivation for investigating planning practice thereby to penetrate this complex pattern of decision making which has important consequences for society and the environment. The following paper provides a brief description of the research programme highlighting some of the key methodological and theoretical dilemmas as well as its implications for planning knowledge.
Description
Book of abstracts : AESOP PhD workshop 1999, Finse, Depertment of Geography Univeristy of Bergen, Norway
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CC-BY