Chamber and committees

Frank Hay submission of 13 June 2021

PE1864/HHH - Increase the ability of communities to influence planning decisions for onshore windfarms

I wish to write in support of this petition.

Problems in the planning system have been highlighted for a number of years now by, amongst others, Planning Democracy but, sadly, issues identified by them have yet to be fully addressed.

This latest petition from Scotland Against Spin specifically targets planning applications for wind farms. It is obvious to anyone involved in opposing windfarms in their areas that it is frequently a “David against Goliath” scenario. The government currently favours “green” energy and is highly likely to ignore the opinions of local residents. Objections from local residents carry little or no weight leaving them frustrated and without a realistic and affordable course to try to overturn poor decisions.

This was never more apparent than in the case of the Viking Windfarm on Shetland. At the Planning Democracy annual conference in April 2015 Viking Energy was selected as an example where the planning system had been observed to be very unsatisfactory. In that case there were 2772 objections to the planning application from environmental groups and locals as opposed to only 1106 letters of support. Unfortunately, that was still not sufficient to trigger a Public Inquiry into the application (Section36) which the Scottish Government (SG) had to decide on. Shetland Islands Council (SIC) was complicit in this since they chose not to object to the application in spite of their own planning department recommending that they should object. An objection from them would have triggered a Public Inquiry. The difficulty here was that the SIC had entered into a partnership agreement with SSE and were also landowners of part of the windfarm site. Before the planning application was lodged they transferred their share to Shetland Charitable Trust in an attempt to avoid conflict of interest. They also saw it as an opportunity to make money for the islands even though environmental doubts were all too obvious. Local residents tried to overturn the decision by the SG to grant planning permission but this could only be done on legal grounds, not planning issues. A David against Goliath battle in the courts ensued and finally the SG and Viking Energy won.

Sustainable Shetland raised in the region of £200,000 to cover legal fees through fund raising efforts by hundreds of local people. This was still not enough to prevent Viking Energy from ultimately going ahead. Much bitterness still persists in the local communities most affected by the development. The devastating environmental consequences of this windfarm having been consented are now all too obvious as construction is under way.

With yet more windfarm planning applications in the pipeline for Shetland I would like to see a much fairer planning system for people affected by proposed windfarm developments. The present system is undemocratic and, in some instances, verging on corrupt. Community benefit is, in my opinion, little more than an attempt at bribery of the local population.

Developers, who are often backed by the Scottish Government and even some Local Authorities, are at an advantageous position in the planning system. Taking advantage of the so called climate emergency, they seek to increase their profits by exploiting any area that shows potential for windfarm development, even if local residents are likely to be severely affected and try to protect their interests. It must be said that developers’ main interest would seem to be financial rather than any genuine desire to “Save the Planet” and the current planning system gives them every advantage in furthering their aims. It is high time that the Scottish planning system was given a thorough overhaul, especially in regard to windfarm developments.