Take action against law-breakers

Published: 24 June, 2010

• THANK you for turning the spotlight on Camden’s lamentable approach to planning enforcement (Calls for crackdown on landlords and developers who breach planning laws, June 17).

The continuing failure to take effective enforcement action certainly encourages miscreants to be confident that they can get away with it.

In Fitzrovia the list of outstanding cases continues to grow.

One of Camden’s ways of resolving cases is not to get a breach remedied but to allow it to run until it becomes time expired and immune from enforcement – that is four years for alterations and 10 years for changes of use.

In Fitzrovia we have examples of both.

Another common tactic is to exercise the council’s right to deem it not expedient to take enforcement action thereby effectively granting planning permission without consultation or members’ involvement.

We have long urged that such cases should be referred to members with an opportunity for public comment before a final decision is taken not to pursue enforcement action.

Introducing an effective enforcement regime is another urgent task for the new administration.
MAX NEUFELD
Charlotte Street Association, W1