Conservative Councillors voiced strong disappointment after Cllr Arthur Neil (Winnington and Castle, Lab) chose to withdraw a cross-party motion on planning oversight, accepting verbal assurances from the administration to avoid public embarrassment for it, at a meeting of the 'Full Council on Thursday 11th December 2025.
The motion, which sought stronger oversight of major commercial, industrial and infrastructure developments, aimed to improve transparency around the discharge of planning conditions and earlier involvement of local councillors when decisions affect their communities. Measures included:
• Automatic notifications to ward councillors on key planning matters
• A process for councillors to request enhanced monitoring of major sites
• Clearer, more accessible tracking of planning conditions, including officer briefings before conditions are discharged
• Periodic Scrutiny oversight and ‘lessons learned’ reviews when decisions are overturned at appeal
Cllr Lynn Gibbon (Marbury, Con), who was set to second the cross-party motion, was furious at the news as she did not agree to withdrawing the motion. Believing it should have been debated and formally adopted to ensure delivery of the protections residents urgently need, Cllr Gibbon said in response that:
“This motion was worked on cross-party in a constructive way and was ready to be supported. The administration was even willing to deliver it — so there was absolutely no reason not to take it to a vote and secure these commitments formally. Withdrawing the motion has weakened accountability and left residents relying on promises rather than decisions.
“I have seen too many assurances fade away over time without strong backing. While I welcome that officers are prepared to work on this, without a positive Council resolution, there is no timetable, no scrutiny, and no guarantee that the improvements we asked for will actually happen.
Cllr Gibbon concluded with “I supported this motion because it delivered fairness, transparency and protection for our communities. I will continue pressing for these measures to be delivered in full — not watered down, delayed or quietly forgotten.”
In response to the withdrawal, Cllr Adrian Waddelove (Farndon, Con), Conservative Group Leader on Cheshire West and Chester Council, expressed dismay that:
“Some local Councillors would rather backtrack on adding accountability for their residents, while blindly following the Labour administration’s wishes to spare its blushes.
“While some areas have seen planning permission granted with three dozen or more highly technical conditions applied, some of the affected local Councillors seem to think that a verbal assurance that monitoring and oversight is more sufficient for them.
“We’ve seen this before; promises made… then delayed, weakened or forgotten. Unfortunately, we have had yet another display from a Labour administration which delights in being untransparent and unaccountable.”
