One of the topics that came up at the Planning Committee last week was the possibility of using an Article 4 direction to overcome various issues. The one in the news at the moment is the permitted development right to convert offices into housing. This was a concern to local residents in Willesden a couple of months ago, and has been the subject of various legal actions in other authorities. Our discussion turned up several areas where we were frustrated by our lack of ability to fulfil residents' wishes in terms of limiting the proliferation of betting shops, amusement arcades and other anti-social activities.
My mine own experience of judicial review leads me to want to avoid legal action if at all possible. Although we won our case on libraries overwhelmingly, it still took up a huge amount of time, money and energy which could have better directed to other things.
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