Luton & South Beds. Joint Planning Committee (JPC)

 

March / April 2010?  Legally required 6-week public consultation

 

We already had an 8-week public consultation about the original version of the Core Strategy, so what’s different about this one?  Well, the previous consultation was optional and included in the Core Strategy development process by the JPC itself.  The previous consultation was not legally required.

 

There’s a fundamental – and VERY IMPORTANT – difference between the last consultation and this one:

 

§ the first consultation was intended to solicit opinions and comments from the general public and key “stakeholders” about the plans, such comments and opinions all being valid and all taken into account by the Joint Technical Unit (JTU) in reporting back to the JPC

§ this new consultation concentrates entirely on the SOUNDNESS of the latest version of the Core Strategy

o general opinions will be accepted but will have very little impact, if any

o inputs that challenge the soundness of the plan are what will matter during the next stage of Examination in Public

§ for example challenges to the transport modelling, affordability, environmental studies etc

 

No matter what inputs are made during this public consultation, the Core Strategy in the version presented to this consultation will go unchanged to the Government Inspector.  All the inputs from the public consultation will also go forward to the Government inspector, together with the JPC/JTU responses to the points that have been raised.