Defective development planning

In many instances, once permission has been granted to develop a site, the precedent for development has been set. In one instance, village land with an approved, modest redevelopment of an old mill into dwellings and the building of three additional cottages, was bought by a developer who applied for a three-storey industrial building with parking for 40 cars. The owner has "a presumption in favour of development" and would have a very good chance of winning an appeal if the application were refused. Contested appeals can be very costly for a local authority, who will often accede in such situations.

The UK 1989 Electricity Act effectively separated the consent procedures for power station and transmission lines. Hence, there was no environmental assessment of the impact of power lines when the new Wilton on Teeside power station was considered. But now the power station is built, the National Grid Company has a statutory duty to connect it to the grid, despite it leading to a 57% electric overcapacity and against mounting opposition from objectors to the construction of the transmission lines. The company is caught in a cleft stick. Since the location of new power stations is determined by market forces and the company has no choice but to connect them up, it has lost the ability to plan. It has, in other words, a strategic function without any strategic powers.