Mr. Paul Hogan:

There are preliminary stages to the preliminary eight weeks in respect of the normal section 247 pre-planning stage and possibly even before that. There might be just an inquiry about something that might not necessarily be a formal proposal, so there are earlier stages but the application does not become formal until there is a section 247 request and does not become part of this process until the initial eight-week period request. To respond to the question about this being used as a defence against a successor to the vacant site levy or similar, it is not envisaged that planning activity would be a means to avoid liability.

Clearly, this is something that is emerging and will emerge separately, but the reality is that what we are trying to achieve is activation and commencement. Further planning activity is not necessarily the objective. For that reason, we would not see it as being related.