Advert on Boulton Tower On Hold

£5000 in costs already identified and final decision still not reached

“The foolhardy blunder of Hounslow Council’s Labour-dominated Planning Committee is costing the Council Tax-payer thousands of pounds,” said Councillor Samantha Davies (Conservative, Turnham Green Ward).

“Hounslow’s Planning Committee, which comprises a majority of Labour councillors, defied professional advice from, inter alia, English Heritage and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to initially allow the erection of an illuminated commercial sign, which was to be placed on top of the residential building of Boulton Towers in Brentford.  The Royal Botanic Gardens then challenged this planning assent, which threatened its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  After obtaining legal advice, the Council then agreed that it needed to seek permission from the High Court to quash the initially defective decision, so that the application may be reconsidered by the Council.

"I asked at the Borough Council Meeting of 27 November 2012 for details of the current known and anticipated costs, including administrative, legal, any compensatory and any other possible expenses.  Approximately £5,000 in costs have already been identified, which does not include such elements as Council Officer time, as this would be too difficult to quantify.  In addition, there is no guarantee that this figure would not escalate, to the Council Tax-payers’ detriment, in the future.  I received no proper answer to my question, only political rhetoric designed to hide inadequate decisions, but I shall endeavour to ensure that the figure is not hidden from our hard-pressed tax-paying local residents,” said Cllr Samantha Davies.

November 29, 2012