AN Inverkeithing councillor slammed the Scottish Government’s planning system as having “no common sense” after a controversial housing development was refused.

The Scottish Reporter has thrown out an appeal by Taylor Wimpey to build up to 450 homes at Spencerfield on the eastern side of the town, concluding that it would “harm the character of the countryside in conflict with the adopted Local Plan and SESplan”.

The plans, which had been recommended for refusal by planners, were unanimously turned down by a full meeting of Fife Council in September 2013 following a refusal by the West Planning Committee the previous month.

More than 250 objections were received and the ‘Save Spencerfield’ campaign group set up to fight the application.

However, Taylor Wimpey appealed – and following the Reporter’s refusal Councillor Lesley Laird highlighted the challenges communities faced.

She said, “This development has been strongly opposed by the majority of local people and consistently rejected by councillors as a suitable development for this area.

“Despite this background the developer took their case to the Scottish Government Reporter, in advance of the publication of the new Local Development Plan.

“On this occasion the Reporter has applied a common sense approach and rejected the site.

“However, what this demonstrates is the challenge that local people face in the way that the current planning system operates.” She said the current planning system is “flawed”, in that the process is “purely developer-led”.

Cllr Laird added, “The Scottish Government has set Fife a housing target number which we are required to meet. The council are required to call for sites to be developed.

“There is no council input to where these sites are and often no connection where economically the best place for new development should take place.

“Little wonder that this leaves local people feeling that sites are ‘imposed’ upon them in order that the council meets a completely unrealistic Scottish Government target.

“Even where the sites are rejected by local people and elected representatives, developers get another opportunity by appealing to the Scottish Government’s Reporter.

“If the Reporter says yes, then the council and local people have to live with the decision.” She said a recent example was the Reporter’s decision to allow development at St David’s Harbour in Dalgety Bay, despite being opposed by the community for over 10 years.

Cllr Laird felt the council should have a say in the process so that local needs are taken into account.

“At the moment it’s far too much of a cherry-pick for developers to bring forward easy-to-build sites in areas that are often already well-developed.

“That’s not the developers’ fault – but the imbalance in the planning system must be addressed.” Reporter Dannie Onn said the character of Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay as separate settlements would be “harmed” if the plans went ahead, and that the site would not contribute 450 homes to the five-year housing supply.

Mr Onn added, “In my assessment, the harm to the character of the area is not balanced by the additional benefit to economic growth in this case.” He also dismissed Taylor Wimpey’s application to form a link road and associated footpaths on land south of Cochrane Avenue and Spencerfield Road, saying it was contrary to the local development plan and “unnecessary” without the proposed housing development.

Andrew Roberts, Taylor Wimpey strategic land manager, said, “We received the appeal decision for Spencerfield in Inverkeithing on Friday of last week, and we are naturally disappointed with the Reporter’s findings.

“Given the timescales involved, we are still in the process of taking advice on the Reporter’s decision.”