MM164 - Page 112 paragragh 11.12
Object
Proposed Main Modifications
Representation ID: 7254
Received: 02/04/2019
Respondent: The Chilterns Conservation Board
Legally compliant? No
Sound? No
Duty to co-operate? Yes
Omit main modification addition of 'within its boundaries' because the revised NPPF suggests that major development could be in the AONB or AONB setting.
Update footnotes to refer to revised NPPF.
The revised NPPF in 2018 has deleted the words "within these designated areas" from the paragraph on major development and AONBs. This introduces a question about whether the major development test is only to be applied in AONB or also in some cases in the setting of AONB, which puts this main mod in doubt.
Old NPPF para 116:
Planning permission should be refused for major developments in these designated areas except in exceptional circumstances and where it can be demonstrated they are in the public interest.
New NPPF para 172
Planning permission should be refused for major development (see footnote 55) other than in exceptional circumstances, and where it can be demonstrated that the development is in the public interest.
Footnote 55 goes on to refer to designation purposes, which are set out in the CRoW Act. The legal duty on local authorities set out in section 85 of the CRoW Act 2000 to have regard to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of AONB does not just apply within the AONB; the only consideration is whether land in the AONB is affected, not where the effect originates. Similarly, the instruction in the NPPF paragraph 172 to give 'great weight' to conserving landscape and scenic beauty applies regardless of whether a development is inside the AONB or on land outside but affecting it. The NPPG also draws attention to proposals 'which might have an impact on the setting of AONBs'.
The point is that the deletion of "in these designated areas" suggest that major development could in some circumstances be applied to setting. Given this, the main mod is not appropriate.
Also the footnotes to this paragraph need updating as they refer to the previous version of the NPPF. References to NPPF para 116 should read 172.
Paragraph 11.12 could usefully refer to the new sentence added to the NPPF para 172:
"The scale and extent of development within these designated areas should be limited."
and to the new information about how to assess whether a proposal is major development in footnote 55: "For the purposes of paragraphs 172 and 173, whether a proposal is 'major development' is a matter for the decision maker, taking into account its nature, scale and setting, and whether it could have a significant
adverse impact on the purposes for which the area has been designated or defined."