29 February 2008
Business leaders have urged the Scottish government and local authorities to 'get a firm grip' and provide the resources to end planning delays.
Iain McMillan, director of CBI Scotland, told an enterprise conference in Glasgow this week that new government figures showed 'truly shocking' delays.
He said: 'If the Scottish government does not deal with this, ministers' own ambitions to equal the UK's rate of economic growth by 2011 will be put at serious risk.'
CBI Scotland has estimated that planning delays cost Scotland £600m each year.
The figures show that only 46% of major applications in 2006/07 were determined within the four-month target time. Under the target, councils should decide 80% of their applications within the deadline.
McMillan said: 'There must be a greater presumption in favour of development built into our planning system.'
A Scottish government spokesman said the comments related to a planning system inherited from the previous administration, which ministers had already acted to improve.
PFfeb2008
