Wednesday, January 23, 2008

National Park's Disgrace.

I was much concerned with a major planning application row when I was an AM, representing Mid and West Wales (which included Breconshire). The development concerned was at Gilestone Farm, Talabont-on Usk, near Brecon and had been approved - but there was a hoo-hah about whether the application had been dealt with in a proper manner. I was in discussion with the Farm's owners and the objectors to the development at the time. It was a hot situation. An inquiry was instigated into how the planning application had been handled by the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.

Before last May's Assembly election the reluctance of the Park's Chief Executive to tell me what had been discovered (I didn't push it at the time because I accepted that the Authority should discuss it first) made me suspect that all was not well. But I didn't expect to read what appeared on BBC online yesterday. Its a disgrace on the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority. I will just reproduce the line from the investigator's report that is so shocking.

"In my opinion this (planning) file has been 'cleansed' in the sense that all drafts and casual notes and other such documents have been deliberately removed".

I'm a long way from the action here, but I cannot see how the person or persons responsible for this 'cleansing' can possibly stay in their job/s. It really is shocking and will bring disgrace down upon the Authority.

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