Villagers in West Lothian have slated the planning system for being “stacked against” rural communities, as they fear two huge industrial developments will destroy the open countryside around them.
Last week the Division of Planning and Environmental Appeals ( DPEA) backed the development of the last remaining farmland between Livingston and Seafield, fields to the north and south of the A705 at Cousland farm.
A Scottish Government appointed Reporter agreed with the land owners and agents that 60 acres of prime agricultural land be turned over to the development of light industrial units.
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And the village has also seen work begin to expand a distillery into other open fields, and warned the developments will mean precious open space will disappear and “it will be too late to recover what is lost.”
“The community is deeply disappointed with this decision,” Damian Byrne, chair of the Seafield Community Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“The worst part is that it is indeed an opinion,” he added. “The report does not offer any real science or legal stance and appears to be incredibly selective”.
The land agents argued that modern units are needed to attract business and jobs to the county. Councillors had rejected the plans last August, branding it speculative development in the countryside.
Earlier last year the community’s vigorous opposition to plans by the Glen Turner Distillery for a massive expansion across fields to the north-east of the village were snubbed by the DPEA when the distillers were given permission to build 20 maturation warehouses - bringing just three new jobs to the area.
Rejection of the expansion plans by West Lothian Council was overturned by a Scottish Government Reporter appointed by the DPEA .
Mr Byrne told the LDRS: “This is the second time in around a year that we have lost out based on a Reporter's opinion. The last was the Glen Turner development.
“This is the trouble with the planning system, it is so ambiguous that these characters can justify anything they like. Why on earth this guy's opinion holds more weight than the Council's or the community's is beyond me.
“The system seems to be stacked against community and local government decision making.”
Mr Byrne added: “There is also a real irony in it. Not long ago the Scottish Government were grandstanding and bleating when the UK government pulled the rug from under them in the Gender Reform Bill.
“I see no difference to what's happened to us. We also have no right of appeal which is infuriating.
“The fact that a complete stranger is making these decisions without any consultation and will never be affected by them I find unacceptable.”
The community council leader said he was “suspicious” about the independence of the Scottish Government “from lobbyists and what type of relationships they share with the private sector.”
And he warned that much of the developed industrial space could wind up sitting unoccupied, an eyesore similar to many developments within Livingston itself.
Housing developers have recently been granted planning permission for sites in the new town originally zoned and developed as industrial areas, which failed to attract tenants.
Mr Byrne said: “West Lothian does not need this development. It will likely sit empty for years like a lot of Kirkton Campus [in Livingston] did. By then it will be too late to recover what has been lost.”
Local councillor and depute leader of the council, Labour's Kirsteen Sullivan, said that while all levels of government recognise the growing climate emergency there seemed reluctance to redevelop brownfield sites, and instead the focus was on developing open countryside.
She told the LDRS: "Once again we have seen local democracy in planning matters thrown out of the window. The application was rejected by West Lothian Council but the Reporter has upheld an appeal to allow the development to proceed.
"I know many Seafield residents and the Seafield Community Council are concerned about the further loss of natural environment in this area, particularly when there are other brownfield sites that could be re-developed in West Lothian.
"We are experiencing a climate emergency - which is recognised by government at all levels - and communities are being asked to do more but when you have decisions like this you can understand why people are angry and frustrated. The importance and value of the natural environment to local communities must be recognised."
The Scottish Goverment defended the independence of the Reporter process and insisted Reporters had to take local views into account.
The spokesman said: “The right to appeal decisions made by planning authorities remains an important part of the planning system.
“The vast majority of appeals that come to Scottish Ministers are decided by an independent Reporter who is required to take into account local views and make a decision on the planning merits of each case in accordance with the local development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
“The Reporters for these two cases were required to take full account of all the information submitted, including from members of the local community and community councils, before reaching their decision.”
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