Context 153 - March 2018

C O N T E X T 1 5 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 8 29 The island’s planning system has much in common with that in the UK, but there are some significant differences.Most of the approximately 1,400 applications per year are determined by an officer with delegated authority, with the others being considered by the plan- ning committee, which comprises a lay membership and a political chair.The council of ministers considers applications which involve government departments, and the council can also ‘call in’ for investigation those applications that it deems to be of national importance, although this rarely happens. Planning appeals are handled somewhat differently to the UK. Local authorities have an automatic right of appeal. However, any organisation or individual can apply for ‘interested party status’ which, if granted, also confers the right of appeal. In other words, even approved applications can be appealed by a third party. Where a planning decision is appealed, an independent planning inspector will consider the case and make a recommendation to the Minister for Environment Food and Agriculture, who will make the final decision. The Isle of Man government operates a single-tiered planning system, in which government both creates and implements planning legislation.While this allows for a certain degree of flexibility, it also allows political intervention in the planning system. The island’s 2017 Social Attitudes Survey found that only 41 per cent of people had confidence in the planning system, and a review by the council of ministers identified the need for a system that was ‘transparent, fair and free from abuse’. Although it is not subject to UK or European regula- tion on the built environment, the island is a signatory to the Valletta Convention on the Protection of the Architectural Heritage of Europe.As well as highlighting the contribution made by the island’s built and natural heritage to the Manx economy and quality of life, the strategic plan recognises the need to balance conservation with economic growth.However, the conflicting priorities of different governmental departments can inevitably lead to inter-departmental friction in this regard. Planning Policy Statement 1/01 allows for the identi- fication of conservation areas, registered buildings and national heritage areas. Unlike the UK, there is currently no grading system in place for registered buildings, although this is under review.The list was first established in 1983 and 125 buildings were registered before 1990. Since then, relatively few additional buildings have been registered.A lack of resources has been cited as the cause of this, but lack of political will also seems apparent. The total now stands at 280, with around 300 further buildings identified as potentially suitable for registration. While listing in the UK is widely recognised as adding value to a property, this is not the case in the Isle of Man.There is significant opposition from some owners to having their buildings registered, and registration is generally considered to reduce a property’s market value. Cuts in government funding have led to the loss of historic buildings grants. Historic buildings owned by government have often not been registered. While the government may protect such buildings, this has led to controversy in recent years, as government has sought to reduce its building stock and several properties recommended for registration were not registered before being placed on the open market. Treatment of registered buildings is covered by the Town and Country Planning (Registered Buildings) Regulations 2013 and by PPS 1/01. Buildings are regis- tered primarily on the basis of architectural or historic interest, with policy closely following that of the UK. However, because the Isle of Man is regarded as a ‘separate entity’, buildings that are worthy of registration on the Isle of Man because of their local significance would often not be considered for listing in the UK. Manx National Heritage (MNH) is the island’s statutory heritage organisation, combining the roles of National Trust, national museum and art gallery, and national library and archives. It also has responsibility for the nation’s archaeological monuments. MNH is a statutory consultee for planning applications and offers pre-application advice to developers regarding the historic environment. However, it has not undertaken significant survey or characterisation studies to inform its decisions and the historic environment record (which is not online) relies heavily on historic data. Planning policy prohibits development that would damage archaeological sites and monuments. However, a recent review of the planning systemmade no reference to the island’s buried archaeological heritage, and the general requirements for developer-funded archaeo- logical assessment prior to development are far less explicit than the UK equivalents. This, combined with less intensive survey and the lack of grant assistance to help developers,means that significantly less archaeologi- cal investigation has been carried out through this route. The council of ministers completed a review of plan- ning in 2016 and a consultation on proposed reforms has recently closed.The reforms aim to create a system which is more flexible, less complex, and easier to use.