By Tom Barton

16 Aug, 2002

Page 8

COUNCILLORS in North Wales should be forced to meet the pounds 30,000 costs of a planning appeal out of their own pockets, a leading building firm said yesterday.

They had defied planning officials' advice by rejecting the application from building firm Watkin Jones to build 36 houses in the village of Llandegfan.

But a Welsh Assembly inspector overturned the decision by the Anglesey council's planning committee, and ordered the council to pay the costs of the firm in the appeal.

The ruling by Assembly planning inspector John Wallis will now allow the development to go ahead.

Yesterday the building firm, one of the biggest in North Wales, called on councillors to save taxpayers the costs and meet the bill out of their own pockets.

'Why is it that ratepayers have to pay this when it should be the councillors that are paying?' John Mendoza, a director at the building firm, said.

'I don't think it's right that the councillors should go round making rash or irrational decisions and then let ratepayers pick up the tab for it.'

In his report the inspector accused councillors of making a decision that 'flew in the face' of Welsh Assembly policy.

'The council had failed to produce evidence to substantiate each of their refusal reasons and to show why the development proposed should not be permitted,' the inspector said.

The inquiry findings placed the blame at the door of the councillors themselves, adding that 'no criticism is made' of council employees, who suggested that the committee support the development.

But councillors last night defended their decision, claiming that it had been made with the full support of the local community.

Coun Richard Owen, who was the committee's chairman when the decision was made, said: 'It was felt that local people did not want the extra houses.

'The community council is up in arms about this, and a lot of councillors felt that they were supporting the community council who feel that the community is growing out of all proportion.'

Coun Eurfryn Davies, whose ward includes Llandegfan, said that a full inquiry held in 1995 suggested that just 15 new houses be built in the village, and that the inspector went against this decision without a thorough investigation.

'The man had made his mind up before he came, and in a matter of hours had overturned the full inquiry and had given the goahead for 40 new houses.'