Southend-on-Sea Corporation v Hodgson (Wickford) Ltd: QBD 1961

The Corporation had, by its engineer, said that its permission for the use of land as a builder’s yard was not in fact and law required. It was mistaken in this view.
Held: What the engineer had said could not create an estoppel preventing the Corporation from exercising its statutory discretion to forbid the land being used as a builder’s yard. A local or planning authority cannot by contract fetter in an anticipatory way its future discretion to approve or reject applications after proper consideration in accordance with the prescribed procedure. An officer of a Planning Authority cannot estop that Planning Authority from subsequently contending that the particular development is not permitted

Judges:

Lord Parker CJ

Citations:

[1962] 1 QB 416, [1961] 2 All ER 46

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedLever (Finance) Ltd v City of Westminster CA 22-Jul-1970
The appellant developers had obtained detailed planning approval for fourteen houses, but after adjustments for a building line, moving several properties distances of several feet toward other properties, further plans were submitted without . .
CitedWestern Fish Products Ltd v Penwith District Council and Another CA 22-May-1978
Estoppel Cannot Oust Statutory Discretion
The plaintiff had been refused planning permission for a factory. The refusals were followed by the issue of Enforcement Notices and Stop Notices. The plaintiff said that they had been given re-assurances upon which they had relied.
Held: The . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Planning, Estoppel

Updated: 20 December 2022; Ref: scu.443218