Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Land Use Planning
By law, Local Planning Authorities must consult HSE on any planning applications for specified developments around major hazard installations.
In January 2008 the London Borough of Lambeth informed HSE that they were minded to go against HSE’s advice, for development at The Oval Cricket Ground, London next to gasholders operated by Southern Gas Networks plc. After careful consideration, HSE requested, through the Government Office for London (GOL), that the Secretary of State (SoS) for Communities and Local Government should call-in this application for her own determination. HSE was advised by GOL on 2 May 2008 that the SoS had called in the application. A planning inquiry will start on 14 October 2008 which is scheduled to run for approximately three weeks. HSE is currently preparing its input to the inquiry.