South Tyneside’s Local Plan to be submitted despite councillors voting to reject it

South Tyneside Council has confirmed that the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has intervened in the borough’s Local Plan.

It follows a vote by South Tyneside’s councillors to reject the Local Plan by 27 votes to 23 during an extraordinary meeting on Thursday, February 27.

The plan was initially rejected in September 2024 before it was brought back by Labour councillors with no changes made to it.

Despite the Local Plan being rejected, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning has given notice that the local authority must submit the existing draft of the plan for examination in public by March 12.

Cllr Tracey Dixon, Leader of South Tyneside Council, has stated that the local authority has “no option” but to move forward with the Local Plan.

She said: “We knew that this was a risk. There is no option here, this is a direction from the Secretary of State.

“The draft Local Plan will now be submitted for examination in public.

“The plan has been subject to significant public consultation and is the product of extensive work to compile an evidence base over several years.

“Having an up-to-date Local Plan means that we are in control of development, and we can ensure it is high quality and accompanied by the necessary infrastructure.

“But it isn’t just about building houses; it’s about seeking the most sustainable locations for development, creating the kind of communities our residents deserve, with policies in place to protect community facilities and services, enhance nature and wildlife and reduce pollution.”

The Local Plan provides a framework for where new homes, businesses, shops and leisure amenities will be built up in the borough up until 2040 - every local authority is required to have a valid Local Plan to set out all of the above.

Cllr Margaret Meling Lead Member for Economic Growth and Transport at South Tyneside Council, has highlighted how the Local Plan will help the borough in years to come.

She added: “Having robust policies will give us more power to refuse inappropriate development and speculative proposals.

“We want people who grow up in South Tyneside to be able to stay here, with access to a range of housing to rent or buy, and skilled jobs.”

Throughout the Local Plan consultation period, the Save the Fellgate Greenbelt campaign has been petitioning the Council to urge them to reconsider a proposal to build up to 1,2000 houses on greenbelt land.

Dave Green, a spokesperson for the group, welcomed last week’s vote to reject the Local Plan but has now slammed the decision to push forward with it just days later.

He said: “This needs to be challenged, it is crazy that it has been allowed to be submitted - it feels like this was always their plan from the moment they brought it back before the Council.

“I’m not sure of the legalities that surround this but it needs to be investigated in some way because it has been pushed through within three working days of the second vote.

“During the extraordinary meeting on Thursday morning, Councillor Ford highlighted that during the planning briefing and other meetings about the Local Plan, the possibility of the Government taking this plan to an examination in public was never raised.

“All the faith in the democratic processes here in South Tyneside have been totally destroyed by this decision - they tried to force it through with it vote, it failed and then days later, they get the outcome they wanted anyway.

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“I feel sorry for all the councillors and the members of our campaign group as all their hard work has essentially been for nothing.

“For now, we need to stay strong and positive and prepare for the examination in public to ensure that we have the right people there to state our case.”

You can find out more about the Save the Fellgate Greenbelt Campaign by visiting: https://savethefellgategreenbelt.co.uk/.

South Tyneside Council has stated that the public examination of the Local Plan is expected to be held later this year.