Review of the Local Development Scheme
2.21 As anticipated in our Third Annual Monitoring Report, changes to the regulations and policy governing the preparation of development plan documents means that we can now designate key strategic sites in our Core Strategy. As a result we have discontinued work on an Allocations and Infrastructure Plan. This will be reflected in changes to our Local Development Scheme late in 2008.
2.22 Similarly the amended regulations include changes to the milestones for preparing a development plan document. 'Preferred Options' is no longer a milestone. Instead there is a new 'publication' milestone in advance of submission to the Secretary of State. This has implications for the dates of milestones from submission onwards. The revised milestones will also be included in changes to the Local Development Scheme.
2.23 Difficulties in getting the agreement of all ten districts for the Stage 2 Issues and Options has resulted in the need to change the programme for preparation of the Greater Manchester Joint Waste Development Plan Document, also taking into account the revised milestones.
2.24 The 10 Greater Manchester Authorities also have a requirement to include minerals policies and identify sites for aggregate extraction, processing and safeguarding within each of their LDF's. It is intended that this will proceed in much the same way as the Joint Waste DPD and will be produced by Greater Manchester Geological Unit, although agreement on developing the document is yet to be formalised.