New campaign launched in response to Bucks Council's controversial planning portal change

The petition states the original decision was made without prior consultation with residents, local councillors or parish councils.

“Recent press comments say Buckinghamshire Council’s reasons to stop public comments were made in order to comply with data protection law,” the petition said.

“If this is the case, there are many other councils who are continuing to publish public comments, which indicates there is no statutory prohibition on publication.”

The ePetition, which runs until June 23, comes after MPs and councillors urged Buckinghamshire Council to revisit its controversial decision. The council made the decision in March, last year, following a data breach, meaning that residents’ opinions on everything from loft conversions to large housing developments are no longer publicly visible on its planning portal.

People can still have their say on planning applications, but their views are not uploaded to the portal where they can be viewed by others. Buckinghamshire Council is one of only a few authorities to restrict access in this way, with many neighbouring councils such as South Oxfordshire and Slough continuing to publish planning comments.

Conservative MP for Mid-Buckinghamshire, Greg Smith, called the move “extraordinarily infuriating”. He said: “It is therefore extraordinarily infuriating to find that fellow objectors’ comments are hidden from view on the planning portal.

“I want everyone to be able to see the strength of feeling against these inappropriate proposals and have made it clear to the council my frustration.”

Jonathan Waters, Liberal Democrat councillor for Penn, Tylers Green and Loudwater, said the council should reverse what he called a “retrograde step”.

Cllr Waters added: “This is totally unacceptable and should be reversed immediately. If comments cannot be seen the public don’t know if the very valid points they may wish to make have been made already or not.”

In response, Peter Strachan, Buckinghamshire Council’s cabinet member for planning, said the council had no intention of reversing its decision.

He said: “Buckinghamshire Council made the decision last year to no longer publish comments from individuals on the council’s planning page in order to comply with the law.

“We have a legal duty to protect the personal information of individuals under GDPR rules. Although comments are not publicly visible, the planning assessment process has not changed and decision makers, including planning committee members, still have full access to all comments.

“All views given are fully considered when determining an application, as has always been the case.”

To sign the petition visit: https://tinyurl.com/bucksplanningcomments.