BOURNEMOUTH council has been accused of a fix up on its Wessex Fields planning application after appointing a consultancy firm to assess the scheme.

The proposal would see a new junction created on the A338 at Holdenhurst, and has drawn opposition from environmental and heritage campaigners among hundreds of submitted objections.

The borough has appointed Glasgow firm Blueprint Planning to act in the role of a planning officer – preparing an impartial report for the planning board – after the senior planning officer originally assigned to the application left the authority's employment.

Earlier this year the officer in question, Sophie Edwards, had written to the Wessex Fields plan project manager expressing serious concerns about the scheme and indicating her intention to recommend refusal.

Conor O'Luby, co-ordinator for anti-Wessex Fields campaign group Friends of Riverside, said: "This company's purpose is to provide help and advice to developers in obtaining planning permission.

"Throughout the application process we have been constantly told that the local planning authority and the development arm of the council are entirely separate and independent of each other.

"With the appointment of (Blueprint director) David Innes, we argue that the line of separation has become unrecognisably blurred and that the appointment constitutes a conflict of interest."

Council head of planning Andrew England has denied this however.

"We have temporarily appointed Blueprint Planning due to a gap in resource with the departure of the case officer," he said.

"Our normal approach is to use internal resources to process planning applications, however it is not unusual for local planning authorities to use planning consultants to aid capacity, especially at a time when the recruitment of suitably qualified and experienced planners is challenging for most local authorities.

"We are satisfied there is no conflict of interest.

"Blueprint Planning’s remit is to support the local planning authority in preparing a draft planning report whilst evidencing objectivity and independence from the applicant."

Mr England said the firm's report would be "reviewed and examined" by both the borough's legal services department and a senior planning officer before going to the board.

On Ms Edwards' departure he said: "As far as we are aware the case officer’s resignation is not linked to the opinions expressed in the letter dated March 28, 2018.

"The opinion sets out the views of a number of consultees which are recorded on the planning portal, and available for the public to view."

The council says Blueprint is being paid "an appropriate commercial hourly rate" and as such no final cost has been agreed.

Speaking for the council "in its capacity as the applicant for the scheme", head of major projects Gary Powell said "a number of issues and concerns" raised by planning officers, Wessex Water, Natural England, Historic England and the Environment Agency had been "positively addressed".

"The council has listened carefully to the concerns raised and is continuing to amend the plans accordingly, with a view to submitting additional information within the next six weeks, which will be subject to a further statutory consultation period," he said.