Sean,
You mean the local council of 65 is not really a local branch of government? Do you not think it is a bit scary to have a very small committee make decisions of substantial consequence without recourse?
I don't want to be argumentative, but in every system of delegated authority I've been aware off, the delegator always retains the authority to review decisions reached by the lower levels. As I noted earlier, if the Aberdeenshire/ Scotland system is different, reversing the 65 member council decision to go forward with the application should be a slam dunk, unless, of course, politics and not the rule of law reign there (which I strongly doubt).
Lou
There is recourse. Council members stand for election. That is how democracy works. Democracy is not about second guessing every decision based on knee jerk public/media opinion. If this were the case, very little would get done.
I am not exactly sure what you mean. If a body that delegates power can reverse the decision of a committee then it really isn't a delegated system. It sounds more like you are asking the committee to make a recommendation to the full council - this is a totally different function and one in which the committee wouldn't have the power to make decisions. Groups like this are very common in councils, but this is not what we are talking about when it comes to the situation in Aberdeen.
Either a body delegates decision making power or it doesn't - its a black or white situation. You can't have a delegation system which can be overridden whenever the full council disagrees. What is the point of a system like this? It would mean that the full council is reviewing all cases. As I have already said, council members do not have enough time in the day to properly consider all planning applications and they are in no way expected to.
Consider what you are requesting. It takes at least 15 minutes of looking at an application to get a reasonable understanding of what is being proposed. If the proposal is at all controversial in terms of listed buildings, conservations areas, building materials, ethnic minority groups, previous conditions on the development of the land etc then a site visit is likely necessary. Then there are the consultation periods with neighbours and in many cases local parish councils. Then there is the matter of meeting (in public) to discuss the application which in and of itself would be terribly cumbersome with a 65 (or 45 or 25) member council. Assuming this goes to plan then a decision can be made at the meeting. Often times, things are so smooth. Applications an be called in or appeals can be made. I hope you are beginning to see the reality of the situation and can understand why the delegated system works and is necessary. We are not just talking about the odd application. A council the size of Aberdeenshire may get hundreds, perhaps thousands of applications each year.
Ciao