BARROW Borough Council's planning committee has decided the fate of a Dalton garden centre's £1m extension.

Marc Charnley, 43, the owner of Charnley's Home and Garden in Ulverston Road, Dalton, reopened the store in October following a huge refurbishment.

A mezzanine level was built to display a wide range of furniture along with other work which saw the enclosure of the central courtyard and the resurfacing of the car park.

However, Mr Charnley had no planning permission from Barrow Borough Council to complete any of the building work or to sell furniture on the premises - something which he claims he wasn't made aware of.

The council's planning committee today decided whether or not to seek enforcement action, which could see Mr Charnley have to pull down the entire refurbishment.

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3.30pm: An enforcement notice will now be put out for the £1m revamp to be demolished within 12 months but Charnley's has the option to appeal that notice.

3pm: Councillors agree to authorise enforcement action against Charnley's.

2.55pm: Mr Charnley is not in attendance, having withdrawn his planning application.

2.45pm: Meeting begins.

PLANNING LAW ENFORCEMENT: When can action be taken and what can be done?

There is a range of ways of tackling alleged breaches of planning control, and local planning authorities should act in a proportionate way.

Local planning authorities have discretion to take enforcement action, when they regard it as expedient to do so having regard to the development plan and any other material considerations.

This includes a local enforcement plan, where it is not part of the development plan.

In deciding whether enforcement action is taken, local planning authorities should, where relevant, have regard to the potential impact on the health, housing needs and welfare of those affected by the proposed action, and those who are affected by a breach of planning control.

Enforcement action is discretionary and local planning authorities are told to act proportionally in responding to suspected breaches of planning control.

Some local authorities will look at the amount of harm caused by the suspected breach and examine whether it justifies taking action. Sometimes no action will be taken if the authority believes that planning permission is likely to be been given.3 Generally, a council is expected to take action where serious harm to local public amenity is being caused.4

If a building has been erected without planning consent, it is possible for the authorities to require it to be demolished. That is not common but it does happen. Failure to comply with either an enforcement notice or a stop notice is a criminal offence. In certain circumstances unlimited fines can be imposed, so as to deal with the situation in which a developer is making a great deal of money out of failing to comply with the law.