A COMMUNITY council has launched an attack on East Lothian Council and the Scottish Government after plans to build 120 houses were approved.

Ormiston Community Council blamed council officials for not putting up a “competent defence” when it came to an ultimately successful appeal against the local authority’s decision to refuse planning permission for the houses off the village’s Limeylands Road.

And they claimed “elements” of the council either wanted the housing to go ahead or were incompetent.

The community council issued a strongly worded statement condemning the Scottish Government reporter’s decision to grant an appeal against the council’s refusal. But it also criticised council officials for the way they responded to the appeal. They said in a statement: “It is quite evident that, due to the number of planning decisions, particularly in East Lothian, that are being overturned on appeal, that current Scottish Government policy on housing is more sympathetic to the needs of the developers than the integrity of the planning system. What in effect is happening in East Lothian As a result, rather than the local authority shaping the strategic housing policy for East Lothian, it is the developers.

“Nevertheless, in this case, had officials of East Lothian Council made a more competent defence of the decision to refuse planning permission, at the appeal, it would not have been legally possible for the reporter to have reached the decision they did. This was underlined by several critical comments by the reporter in their findings of the council’s evidence, submissions and understanding during the process.”

The statement comes after the reporter confirmed a decision initially taken last March to overturn the council’s refusal of the development.

In a 27-page notice of intent sent to the local authority last year, the reporter dismissed claims by officials that the housing would place Ormiston Primary School over capacity with no scope to expand beyond current plans, while claiming the council’s calculations were inaccurate and of “very limited helpfulness”.

She accused the council’s education projections of not being “robust”, with “unexplained discrepancies”.

She said: “I do not conclude, on the evidence available to me, that the extension of the school on the existing campus would be impossible.”

Council officials initially considered challenging the decision in court but that plan was dropped after legal advice.

Last week, the reporter confirmed planning permission had now been approved for the development to go ahead, to the dismay of the community council.

The community council said: “This unwelcome decision will create funding anomalies for the future provision of primary school education in Ormiston should this 120 house development proceed, leading to a situation in the future whereby Ormiston Primary School may not be able to accommodate all Ormiston children.

“Questions now need to be asked, regarding the circumstances that allowed the reporter to have been able to reach such a decision. A fair-minded person analysing East Lothian Council’s handling of this process can only conclude that either elements within the council wished for this development to go ahead or they were just simply incompetent.”

Councillor Norman Hampshire, chairman of the council’s planning committee, said: “The council is deeply concerned that in this case the Scottish Minister’s reporter has ignored the council’s democratic decision on the application at planning committee, the education service’s professional advice, as well as the wishes of the community council and the local residents.

“The chief executive has written to the chief reporter and chief planner to express the concerns at the handling of the case and requesting a meeting to discuss the issues arising.”