Petition · past parliament
Protect our Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) from major development
Rejected
13 signatures
What the petition asks
West Dorset District Council's Local Plan includes a proposed major development (930 houses, 4 hectare 'employment zone', etc) at Vearse Farm, Bridport. The scale is unprecedented in an AONB, which is supposed to have the highest status of protection and be conserved for future generations.
National Planning Policy states: ‘Planning permission should be refused for major developments in these designated areas except in exceptional circumstances and where it can be demonstrated they are in the public interest.’ No exceptional circumstances have been evidenced - the council merely cites the need for national and local growth. If it goes ahead it will mean the AONB designation provides no protection at all, nationwide, and our best landscapes will be at grave risk.
Why it was rejected
It asked for something that is not the responsibility of the UK Government or Parliament.
We can't accept your petition because the UK Government and Parliament aren't responsible for the issue you raise. Local planning issues are the responsibility of your local council.
You could raise your issue with a local councillor, who represents you. You can use this page to find out who your local councillors are, and how to contact them:
https://www.gov.uk/find-your-local-councillors
Once an application is made for the development to take place, all local residents have the right to request that a planning application be ‘called in’ by the Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government. This means that it will assess the planning application against certain criteria and decide if a full inquiry is needed. For more information, including the criteria and how to request the call in of a planning application, see:
http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN00930/SN00930.pdf
You could start a new petition asking the UK Government and Parliament to remove the exceptional circumstances clause for major developments in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty from the National Planning Policy Framework, if that's what you'd like to happen.
You could raise your issue with a local councillor, who represents you. You can use this page to find out who your local councillors are, and how to contact them:
https://www.gov.uk/find-your-local-councillors
Once an application is made for the development to take place, all local residents have the right to request that a planning application be ‘called in’ by the Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government. This means that it will assess the planning application against certain criteria and decide if a full inquiry is needed. For more information, including the criteria and how to request the call in of a planning application, see:
http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN00930/SN00930.pdf
You could start a new petition asking the UK Government and Parliament to remove the exceptional circumstances clause for major developments in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty from the National Planning Policy Framework, if that's what you'd like to happen.
Timeline
| 20 Sep 2018 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 26 Sep 2018 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
13
Status
Rejected
Rejected
26 Sep 2018
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.