Adoption of the Local Plan has been delayed in light of a landmark deal that could transform St Helens .
St Helens Council was due to submit the draft version of its Local Plan to a government planning inspector, to make sure the plan was legally sound.
It had been intended for the plan to be adopted this year, but this now looks highly unlikely.
This is because the council has announced it will undertake a review of the plan after cabinet agreed to enter a long-term partnership with the English Cities Fund (EFC) to regenerate St Helens and Earlestown town centres.
Speaking at an extraordinary cabinet meeting, St Helens Council leader David Baines said it would be “irresponsible” to submit the plan in light of the deal.
“In addition to this simply being a regeneration deal, importantly the nature of the partnership would allow regeneration opportunities to be explored, not just in the town centres, but right across the borough,” Cllr Baines said.
“Because of that, I believe it would be irresponsible to submit a Local Plan for inspection before properly taking into account the potential of this deal.”
The delay is the latest in a long line of setbacks for the controversial Local Plan.
The council first consulted with the public over its ‘preferred options’ Local Plan in December 2016.
Two years on, the council delayed the publication of the plan while it sought clarity on the government over to “conflicting” government housing data.
This was quickly resolved, and the submission draft version of the plan was published in December 2018.
In March 2019, the council was forced to re-run a publication consultation, which was intended to be the last time residents could officially comment on the Local Plan before it was sent to the government for independent examination.
This was after campaigners wrote to the council to request an immediate extension as it had failed to write to numerous residents in Bold and Clock Face who live near sites proposed to be removed from the green belt.
Last August, a delegated decision was taken to approve £156,000 of additional funding to cover the costs of the final stages of the Local Plan, to be spent over a two-year period.
The Local Plan was due to be submitted to the planning inspectorate last autumn, but that did not happen.
But senior figures decided to hold off submitting the plan as they believe the ECF partnership could have major implications on it.
It is also understood the council’s new chief executive, Kath O’Dwyer, wants to review the plan before it is sent to the planning inspector.
A council spokesman said cabinet will consider in summer a report setting out the implications of the partnership on the Local Plan.
Depending on the outcome of the review, a new public consultation could take place.
