Cheshire East Council bosses have defended the £3.7 million spent on the Local Plan which has taken more than five years to put together.
Critics have attacked the authority for spending the amount after a planning inspector criticised the plan for not addressing housing supply needs.
The Plan is designed to be a blueprint for development in the borough up to 2030.
But many have attacked the council as the inspector’s criticisms mean another six-month delay before it can be formerly adopted and used to fend off unwanted development.
Deputy Leader Cllr David Brown stepped back from overseeing the plan after the inspector’s report was unveiled. Cllr Peter Raynes (pictured) is now spearheading the project.
Cheshire East Leader Cllr Michael Jones said the £3.7 million was money well spent to protect Cheshire East – and called it “a drop in the ocean” compared to the economic benefit in the years to come.
Cllr Jones added: “The council put the spending figure in the public domain in the first place. We have nothing to hide.
“It is perfectly reasonable and sensible to spend £3.7m putting together such a large, complex and vitally important document as the Local Plan and I don’t understand why some critics are seemingly so upset.
“A spend of £3.7m would equate to the monetary value of about 1.5 acres of development on land in the north of the Borough.
“When you consider many developers are trying to get planning permissions on our greenbelt and greenfield sites – £3.7m to protect us from up to £81 billion of development gain going in unsustainable locations seems pretty good value for money to me.”
The council received more than 40,000 responses from residents and organisations, which were collated, assessed and fed into the submission version of the Local Plan Strategy. There have been nine rounds of public consultation.
Cheshire East has now created a Task Force, led by Cllr Raynes, to coordinate the work to address the inspector’s concerns over housing needs.
Cllr Raynes, Cabinet member for finance, added: “It is important to bear in mind the pause in the public examination of the Local Plan is not a rejection of the entire Local Plan – and we welcome the opportunity to address the specific areas of concern to the Inspector.
“The report highlights some weaknesses in the Local Plan but there’s plenty that’s right – the duty to cooperate with neighbouring councils for example.
“The delay is regrettable but it is important this document is right for the people of Cheshire looking forward to 2030.
“We will continue to put residents first while working with the Planning Inspectorate to get this right.”
Well, of course they’re going to justify it, aren’t they! A bunch of incompetents wastes £3.7m of OUR money and then says all is well. All this shows is that elected councillors in CEC hold local taxpayers in total contempt and clearly view us all as complete idiots. At least Councillor Brown had the good sense and decency to step back although he’s just taking the easy way out really. As always, Councillor High and Mighty Jones just carries on as if nothing much is amiss. CEC has certainly deteriorated under his “leadership” if that is the right word.