Speaking at planning meetings

In certain cases, the council gives people the opportunity to speak to the Planning Committee. You can register to speak at the Planning meetings.

The Planning Committee normally meets once every four weeks on a Wednesday evening starting at 7.30pm. The meetings are held at the Town Hall, Reigate. You can access meeting dates on our online Council meeting diary.

Public speaking protocol at Planning Committee

Chairman’s Discretion:

Public speaking operates at the discretion of the Chairman, with the approval of the Planning Committee.

The Chairman retains the discretion to vary the procedures as long as there is always equity and proportionality between objectors and supporters.

Subject to the above, the following rules will be applied in all normal circumstances:

Applications recommended for approval:

Members of the public may register to speak if they have made written representations. In these circumstances the applicant and/or agent has the right of response.

The applicant may not register to speak if there are no objectors.

Applications recommended for refusal:

Applicants may register to speak if an application is recommended for refusal. In these circumstances, members of the public having made written representations will have the right of response.

Objectors may not speak unless the applicant has registered an intention to speak.

In all cases where public speaking is allowed:

A maximum of two speakers in favour, and two speakers against, will be permitted for any application subject to a maximum speaking time of three minutes per speaker.

A member of a parish or town council making representations, either for or against an application, will be given preference within the permitted allocation of two speakers if the maximum number of people registering to speak is exceeded.

Residents Associations will have no preferential right to speak either for or against an application.

Subject to the above, speakers will be registered on a first-come first served basis.

General

Public speaking will operate after the officer’s introductory presentation of the application and before the debate is opened to Members.

The onus is on the applicant or interested parties to check when an application is going to committee and to register to speak.

The deadline for registering to speak is 5 pm on the Monday before the date of the Committee.

Contact details for the registered speakers will be given to anyone else having wanted to speak, so that they have an opportunity to put forward their representations for the speaker to take into consideration.

The opportunity to speak is in addition to the normal practice of making written representations to the Council.

Details of which applications are being considered by the Planning Committee are normally available one week prior to the meeting. Call the Contact Centre on 01737 276 000, or check the ModernGov website.