Growing Anger at ‘Development Stretch’

But there is an increasing number - of non-NIMBY and indigenous country dwellers in Scotland - who identify the lack of joined-up thinking by the Scottish Executive and local authorities as being responsible for the worsening situation now evident here. The goal of bringing more people into the countryside to encourage its regeneration is both recognised and accepted. The means is firmly rejected.

Garth Against Grabs

The sea change in agricultural practices and payments has taken land out of production and made it available for residential and recreational purposes. The realisation of the asset that it represents opens it up to speculation whose management and regulation is out of kilter with its opportunity.

The area close to the mouth of Glenlyon, and within Perth & Kinross Council’s Highland Area Local Plan of 2000, has been subject to a surge in housing development over the last few years.

Mark Gallacher is chairman of the Garth Residents’ Association (GRA). ‘Garth’ embraces a settlement of about a dozen dwellings and his group includes the residents of them all, with one exception. “Unfortunately, at the time that the plan was produced Garth was not included as a small settlement,” he told Comment.

“The reasons for this are unclear, though it would seem that it was ‘just missed out’. However, until December 2005, for planning purposes applications made at Garth were considered in the same way as those made for other small settlements, although we did not have the benefits of having a defined boundary, or agreed development sites, which clearly define where development would, or would not, be allowed.”

Over-development Fears

In December 2005 Perth & Kinross Council at the behest of the Scottish Executive, adopted a ‘Houses in the Countryside Policy’. This covers rural areas not specifically shown as small settlements in the Local Plan and it relaxes the rules around development. “For our residents this has raised fears of over-development without any real opportunity for us to become involved in the planning process - other than on an individual application basis,” Mark continued.

Since early 2005 GRA had been lobbying to have a settlement boundary adopted for Garth so that a proper debate on development in and around it could take place. “We were told that we needed to wait until the Local Plan was reviewed, and that this was imminent. Over a year later we have now been told that there are no fixed dates for starting that review of the Local Plan and that, even when this process does begin, it may take a number of years to complete.

“Several years is a long time in planning terms and this delay has left us in a position where we cannot have a meaningful dialogue about development in our area. As a group of residents we are very concerned that, by the time we are able to get properly involved in the planning process, our small settlement will be changed beyond recognition.”

The ‘development stretch’ which particularly concerns GRA is that which has begun extending from the ‘ferm touns’ of Donafuil and Coshieville, westwards to Keltneyburn and beyond to Drumharry, Garth and Fortingall.

Ballotbox Backlash

The review of the Perthshire Highland Local Area Plan is now overdue, but it does not appear to be a priority. The advice from the Scottish Executive Deputy Communities’ Minister at a recent conference was that “the best time for communities to get involved in the planning process is when Local Plans are being produced, rather than when individual applications are being considered.”

GRA - and other residents elsewhere in Highland Perthshire and beyond - see this as yet another example of fudge and prevarication of central and local government, where the message is one thing and the practice is another. Just what do folk do when the avenue for becoming involved in the development of local plans is blocked to them?

If frustrations over this and other such local issues is mounting elsewhere to the same extent, then parliament and city hall will both experience the backlash in the ballotbox next year should they continue to ignore and anger the voters in Scotland’s countryside.