Case Comment: Redhill Aerodrome Ltd v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government [2014] EWCA Civ 1386

The Court of Appeal has overturned the High Court's ruling in the case of Redhill Aerodrome Ltd v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. The Secretary of State appealed against the high court ruling, quashing a planning inspector's refusal of planning permission for the construction of a hard runway to replace existing grass runways by Redhill Aerodrome Ltd. The planning inspector refused the appeal as the proposal would be inappropriate development in the green belt and the harm to landscape character, visual impact and quality of life would not be outweighed by other considerations. Redhill Aerodrome Ltd applied to quash the inspector's decision on the ground that she had erred in taking non-green belt harm into account. Redhill submitted that the words 'any other harm' contained in paragraph 88 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) meant "any other harm to the green belt'".

The issue that the Court of Appeal had to determine, as summed up by Sullivan LJ in his judgment, "do the words 'any other harm' in the second sentence of paragraph 88 of the Framework mean "any other harm to the Green Belt" as submitted by the Respondent, and found by the Judge, or do they include any other harm that is relevant for planning purposes, such as harm to landscape character, adverse visual impact, noise disturbance or adverse traffic impact, as submitted by the Appellants?"

While delivering his judgment, Sullivan LJ pointed out the "not only are the words "any other harm" in the second sentence of that paragraph unqualified, they are contained within a paragraph that expressly refers, twice, to "harm to the Green Belt." He also did not accept that the other policies "wrapping around" the Green Belt policy in paragraphs 87 and 88 of the NPPF are "very different from previous national policy.

Sullivan LJ acknowledged that excluding non-green belt harm from "any other harm" would make it easier for developers to secure planning permission for inappropriate development in the green belt "because the task of establishing 'very special circumstances'. While never easy, would be made less difficult". Sullivan LJ believed that it had not been the government's intention "to make such a significant change to green belt policy".

The judgment can be read here: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2014/1386.html

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