The National Parks watchdog, the Council for National Parks (CNP) yesterday (Thursday) urged the Welsh Assembly Government to 'call-in' the Bluestone proposal and hold a public inquiry.
CNP says that political pressure on Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority members threatens to make a mockery of National Park principles.
CNP's head of policy, Ruth Chambers, said: "The political pressure being placed on members of the Park Authority to approve the Bluestone proposal is in danger of preventing a fair and impartial decision. The situation has become so serious that it could lead to a complaint to the Ombudsman.
"Given the highly politically charged nature of this development proposal, we consider that the Environment Minister has no choice other than act to safeguard the integrity of the planning process by taking the decision out of the hands of the National Park Authority."
Ruth Chambers concluded: "By calling in this application Carwyn Jones would make it crystal clear that the Welsh Assembly Government is serious about its commitment to open government, transparent decision making and its core principle of sustainability. To leave this decision in the hands of the National Park Authority, whose members we understand have been put under intense pressure to approve the development, would in our view result in a serious loss of public confidence in the Assembly."
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Meanwhile, representatives of Bluestone last week met with Pembrokeshire Coast National Park officers and the Countryside Council for Wales for the first time since the authority's decision to defer the planning application on September 29.
The purpose of the meeting was to agree a way forward in order for the authority to reach a determination in the near future. In a bid to arrive at an early decision, Bluestone has agreed to formally advertise the results of surveys undertaken over the summer period and to further review outflow into the Cleddau.
Said the area manager for McAlpine Special Projects, Martin Osborne: "Our recent survey information has served to verify our previous findings on potential impacts of the development and the biodiversity benefits of the mitigation measures proposed. We do not propose any changes to the application as a result of this information."
The Countryside Council for Wales, the Environment Agency and Pembrokeshire County Council's environmental protection department, all of whom are statutory consultees in respect of outflow into the Cleddau, have already confirmed that there are no harmful impacts as a result of the proposals.
It is anticipated that the information requested will be provided to the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority within the next 10 days.
Ifor Jones, head of conservation for the National Park, said: "The meeting was very positive and we are now expecting the early receipt from the consultants of a further report of surveys which will then be publicised, giving 21 days for public comment.
"Following this the authority's development control committee will be able to determine the application. The authority is committed to bringing the application back before a special meeting at the earliest opportunity."
The actual date will need to be confirmed by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority's committee, but it is anticipated that it could be set for late November.