A planning application has been submitted for 53 houses off the Cavendish Road in Clare. This application was first submitted in 2017 and has bubbled along. I am interested in the debate and listening to all views.

I believe a planning application for a large development, such as this, in a small community like Clare should be held in public and not approved by officers under delegated authority.

So, as soon as I was elected I called this application in. To date it has gone before the Delegation Panel and has now been passed through to the Development Control Committee for the 6th October.

The Clare Society, the Clare Town Council and others have all submitted their comments to the planning process. These will all be taken into account together with reports from many other agencies and organisations.

I have been working with the Town Council and others in Clare to see how the very best result for Clare can be achieved. Working with the planning officer and the developer it seems my intervention has resulted in broadband and solar panels being included in the application. Obvious but not as easy to achieve as you might think!!!

I was expecting to speak at the Development Control Committee alongside the Town Council but fate has an interesting way of intervening.

Today I was asked to sit on the Development Control Committee so I will now be part of the decision making process. Good job I have kept an open mind all the way along or I would be disbarred from taking part in the decision.

I have now read the 212 documents, at the last count, for the third time. What ever the decision I feel I have given significant input to this application on behalf of Clare.