The Scottish Government has been accused of letting planning appeals get out of control as St Cyrus residents enter a seventh month in limbo.
North East Conservative MSP Liam Kerr was speaking after figures revealed the length of time it is taking to settle appeals across Scotland is increasing despite fewer cases.
Figures released under freedom of information found there were 578 cases heard by Scottish Government-appointed reporters in 2015/16 which dropped to 380 in 2016/17.
However, the average weeks taken to issue a decision jumped from 15 to 17 for solo appeals and from 20 to 45 for linked appeals — the highest average rates in five years.
Among those is the appeal into the unauthorised Travellers’ site in St Cyrus which remains outstanding — seven months after the Scottish Government-appointed reporter made his site visit.
Mr Kerr said: “These figures show that the length of time it is taking to settle appeals is increasing, despite the fact there have been fewer cases in the last year.
“That raises some serious questions for the SNP government.
“The process is already very long and local residents are simply left in limbo for months on end awaiting decisions.
“For people in St Cyrus, for example, it has been more than seven months since the reporter visited. That is clearly unacceptable.
“I have said before that we need to have a serious look at the current system and consider what changes can be made to speed up the process. We also need to protect the interests of those affected.
“This is yet another issue that the SNP government — which has become increasingly distracted by independence — needs to address, and fast.”
North Esk Park has substantially expanded since the first temporary homes appeared in September 2013, and Aberdeenshire councillors voted overwhelmingly in favour of granting permission for the creation of an official halting and touring site in April.
The owners applied for retrospective permission, which was approved due to a lack of other sites for Travellers in the council’s Kincardine and Mearns ward.
But the application was called in after SEPA confirmed the site had flooded in 2002, 2012, 2013 and in the aftermath of Storm Frank on December 30, 2015, when residents had to leave their caravans because of rising water levels.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said it is not always possible for the Planning and Environmental Appeals Division (DPEA) to meet targets set for its casework.
He said: “Each case has its own complexities and some can take considerably longer than others.
“Ministers have ensured that DPEA has been able to recruit three new reporters to meet the demand and expectations of all parties involved in planning appeals.
“Whilst this will not be an instant fix to our resourcing issues, it will allow us to build toward meeting the expectations of Ministers and our stakeholders over the course of this year.”
The spokesman added that it is anticipated that a report on the St Cyrus planning application “will be submitted to Ministers this month”.
He said: “It would be inappropriate to comment further on the merits of the application until Ministers have reached a decision.”
