COMMENT: What did they think would happen? (From Oxford Mail)

COMMENT: What did they think would happen?

9:00am Friday 3rd February 2012 in Editorial Comment

IT BEGGARS belief, doesn’t it? We live in a democratic society and yet Oxford City Council is undermining residents’ right to challenge and influence just how our neighbourhoods develop.

In fact, if this were a comedy skit, your sides would be splitting by now.

But sadly this isn’t a joke – or rather, it is, but not a very funny one.

Last year, the council stopped sending out letters, publicising planning applications to those living nearby, in order to save money.

Instead they assumed we would all look on their Planningfinder website to find out if anything was being proposed in our backyards that we needed to worry about.

The reality is that during the past year, only 951 people have signed up to receive email notifications of applications. Which, in percentage terms, amounts to little more than 0.6 per cent of the city’s population.

Is that shocking? Yes.

Is it surprising? No.

If the council had considered, even for a moment, what the reality of their decision would be, it’s likely they too might have guffawed at their own naivety.

As it is, thousands of people have been left in the dark, not least those who don’t have Internet access to begin with.

You can’t even call the council’s decision misguided or stupid; it’s too arrogant for that.

Best then that the whole scheme is scrapped, allowing everyone – instead of just 0.6 per cent – to once again play a part in democratic planning decisions.