Planners overwhelmed by new build bids

In the last three years there has been a 50% rise in the number of applications submitted to Pembrokeshire County Council - from an average of 100 a month to 150.

As confidence in the housing market has grown, so has the volume of applicants seeking planning consent.

David Lawrence, head of planning and development at Pembrokeshire County Council, says the pattern is being repeated across Wales.

"I regularly meet with other chief planning officers and the message I get is that development has taken off right across Wales. On Anglesey applications have doubled,'' he said.

The authority has been forced to take on two planning officers and two administrative staff to share the workload, but Mr Lawrence admitted the department was still under pressure.

A nationwide shortage of qualified planners sparked by increased development means that authorities are competing for staff.

"The pressures on staff are intense and I have every admiration for them,'' said Mr Lawrence.

No single sector has been responsible for the rise in applications. Applications for major projects like Bluestone and LNG are being considered along with new builds, extensions and general alterations and improvements.

Mr Lawrence believed it was a good news story for the county. It demonstrated confidence and the level of disposable income.

He saw increased land values as a contributory factor. "As land and property values have increased there is now a return in developing land with the associated infrastructure whereas that might not have been the case a few years ago,'' he explained. "It demonstrates success for the council's economic development strategy.''

In some areas, particularly within the National Park boundaries, there is not enough development land available to satisfy demand.

As Robert Maine, of Tenby estate agent, Charles Birt and Co, said: "There is a very big demand for plots and we can't match that demand.''