Apologies if this has already been covered elsewhere, but I would like to ask whether anyone could point me to the regulation in the 2004 Act (as amended) which allows authorities to withdraw a DPD prior to submission and return to an earlier stage in the process. This intervention was originally cited as an idea in the 2007 White Paper where it stated that the High Court should be able to direct a plan to be returned to an earlier stage in the process rather than the very start (if the LPA think the changes needed would make this necessary). This has been expanded with some references in the Plan-Making Manual, including the ability for LPAs to undertake 'mitigating action', should the LPA believe that 'extensive' changes need to be made when preparing the Reg 30 consultation statement. This would involve the LPA altering the DPD, consulting the bodies concerned and then resolving to publish the revised document under Reg 27 again. The diagram under 'Responding to fundamental issues of soundness' supports this. However, I am yet to find any new regulation which confirms this. I understand the message that the PAS manual is trying to convey, in that the recent changes have enabled a degree of flexibility, in that a Council can ensure the plan is as sound as it believes it can be prior to submission - although I would prefer to rely on statute rather than a good-practice manual, as helpful as it is!
