Back when I was a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed young reporter (yes, there was a time when that was true, many many moons ago), one of the first big stories I remember covering was the proposed Beauly to Denny powerline.

Up and down Scotland, communities were voicing their opposition to the plans and such was the scale of the development that public inquiries were held into the planning application at various points along the proposed route.

I spent a few, sometimes tedious, days in the Drummond Arms Hotel in Crieff listening to the representations made by the applicants and their experts, the spokespeople for protest groups and others.

Local residents know their communities best

While in-depth talk about planning legislation is not the most scintillating, what I did learn was that while some residents could fall into the “nimby” category, many were subject experts on the local community and surroundings.

They know the ins and outs of infrastructure, pressures on local services, the ecosystem and wildlife and even the history of buildings and land.

They are a real treasure trove for anyone who is looking to come in and create something new.

So I do wonder why planning officials don’t take the views of locals more seriously when scrutinising large-scale applications,........

© The Courier