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Planning Bill

moved Amendment No. 436BA: 436BA: After Clause 199, insert the following new Clause— ““Duty to co-operate with charging authority Partner authorities (within the meaning of Part 5 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 (c. 28)) must co-operate with charging authorities in the preparation of the community infrastructure levy.”” The noble Baroness said: This is another long group. At this stage, I shall speak only to my amendment and ask the Minister a question on one of her amendments. Perhaps she will be able to cover it when she speaks to her amendments. Amendment No. 436BA was discussed with me by the Local Government Association. It would introduce a new clause on a duty to co-operate with the charging authority. It refers to ““partner authorities””. ““Partner”” has an even higher status than a buzzword in local government these days. Almost everything is done through partnership. In the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act, of which many of us have memories, if not necessarily fond ones, there are many provisions about partnerships. The purpose of the new clause would be to ensure that local public bodies co-operate with the charging authorities in order that the charging authorities have full information from which to determine the level and types of infrastructure required in their area. Charging authorities will need access to service-related information held by a variety of agencies if they are fully to understand the infrastructure requirements of local communities. The provision of information relating to long and medium-term service goals, requirements, targets, capacity and so on, will be fundamental to underpinning the charging authorities’ setting of the CIL. I shall refer quickly to government Amendment No. 438M. I am afraid that I am going back to London on this. There is a provision here about the Mayor of London having personally to approve the charge. The Government have tabled Amendment No. 444C, which restricts delegation on the part of the mayor under the Greater London Authority Act 1999, but it does not take out every provision for delegation. Are the two government amendments consistent with one another? More broadly on Amendment No. 438M, I look forward to hearing from the Minister whether the examination of the charging schedule will be a tick-box exercise or something more substantive. I hope that when the Minister introduces Amendment No. 438M, she will explain how the process is anticipated to work. I am unclear from the proposed new clause whether the examiner is simply required to ensure that the process has been complied with, or what the powers will be. I beg to move.