Clause 73
Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill [Lords]
5:45 pm
Julia Goldsworthy (Falmouth and Camborne, Liberal Democrat)
We are trying, in all aspects of the position that we are taking on the Bill, to encourage people as much as possible to make a contribution and to have an impact on the process. Our concern is that the responsible regional authorities alone have that option; individuals might have huge concerns, but they have no recourse to get them heard.
I am sure that the Minister, in her response, will say that there is a route for people to call in if they have concerns. For example, if the responsible regional authorities undertook a revision that they said was not significant enough to require an examination in public, what would the process be if members of the public felt that those revisions were significant? At the moment I do not see any ability for there to be a call-in for an examination in public, which is why amendment 116 replaces “may” with “must” and why we have consequential amendment 117, which is a mechanism to ensure that people have the option to get those examinations heard and on the record. Whether we press the amendments to a vote will depend on whether we are satisfied that such a call-in option and process is available.