oss Smith, the Director of Policy at the North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC), chose an RTPI NE conference in June to mount a spirited defence of the role of local authority planners.
Writing a few days later in The Journal, Ross Smith explained:
“It’s true that local authority planners don’t always endear themselves to NECC members if they drag their feet over applications. But planners are not enemies of enterprise. Instead, where they do their job effectively, they are vital partners in it.”
Smith went on to stress the importance of local plans, and the “local authority planners who must draw up these documents” and concluded “…. in truth I’d rather there were more of them – working with, not against, North East business.”
For a fuller account of Mr Smith’s views, see www.nebusiness.co.uk/business-news/business-comment/2012/06/20/column-ross-smith-enemies-are-nothing-of-the-sort-51140-31218707/
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