About this episode

The episode explores the role of MPs in the planning system with a focus on the Liberal Democrats.

The role of local councillors in the planning system has been a familiar topic of conversation on the podcast in the context of, for example, overturning officer recommendations and the case for a national scheme of delegation. There is less talk about the role of MPs in the planning system, which is something that friend of the podcast Andrew Taylor wanted to remedy. This then is the second of what he and Sam Stafford hope will be five episodes exploring the role of a member of a parliament by way of conversations that Andrew records with representatives from the now five major parties. This time, the Liberal Democrats, and a conversation recorded with Vikki Slade and Sarah Gibson at Soho Radio Studios in April 2026. Andrew, regular listeners will know, is Group Planning and Sustainability Director at Vistry. Vikki represents Mid Dorset and North Poole and is a former group leader on Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council. Indeed Vikki still represents the Broadstone ward. Some listeners might have come across Vikki during her three years at Cratus. Sarah represents Chippenham and has a background in local government and architecture. Over the course of hour an hour so they…

People in this episode

Host: Samuel Stafford

Guests: Vikki Slade, Sarah Gibson

Topics covered

• role of MPs in planning
• local government
• Biodiversity Net Gain
• planning committee reform
• rural economy

Keywords

• planning system
• local councillors
• national scheme of delegation
• strategic links
• pan-constituency significance

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Liberal Democrats

Places: Mid Dorset and North Poole, Chippenham, Soho Radio Studios

More episodes of 50 Shades of Planning

• Emerging Planners · July 18, 2026 · 1h 17m
• Red Hot Planning Chat · July 4, 2026 · 1h 3m
• All Around the World - New Zealand · June 27, 2026 · 1h 9m
• Hitting the High Notes - Peter Soulsby · June 20, 2026 · 1h 4m

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