A series of planning application decisions has gone viral thanks to the sarcastic responses dished out by a junior Kent council worker who believed himself to be testing a dummy website.
A number of planning permission applications for businesses ranging from animal shelters to pubs have been rejected – and some approved – with bizarre responses given as the official reasons for the verdicts.
The decisions, which are legally binding and which dramatically alter the future of the petitioners, were made by a junior worker at Kent council who mistakenly penned sarcastic responses under the false impression that he was simply testing out the process on a dummy website.
One applicant, a charity boss at an animal sanctuary, was told by Swale Borough Council her plans were turned down because “Your proposal is whack”, with a second comment adding, “No mate, proper whack”.
A butchery business that wanted to expand into a take-away service found his plans refused with the comments “just don’t” and “no”.
Two separate applications from pubs for part and full demolition were approved with surreal notes including “Incy wincy spider” and “why am I doing this am I the chosen one”.
A statement from the local authority said: “This language was used by a junior officer with no knowledge of any of the applications, who believed they were working solely in a test environment and that the comments would never be published.”
It could take up to three months to have the decisions quashed via a judicial review, and is expected to cost at least £8,000 of public funds to rectify.
