Controversial plans to upgrade a mast in Radstock which could include 5G in future have been permitted by a B&NES Planning Officer. Despite objections from Radstock Town Council and a call-in request for the application to be heard in public by Westfield Ward Councillor, Eleanor Jackson, the Chair and Vice-Chair of B&NES Planning Committee chose to send it back to the Officer who approved it.

63 comments were received in connection with the plans at Gasex on Frome Road, 42 of which were objections. Residents had spoken of health fears, having to live in proximity to the mast 24/7 and the devaluation of properties. One local resident’s home was not included in the plans, despite being a stone’s throw away.

Chair of Radstock Town Council’s Planning Committee and one of the Ward Councillors for the town, Bruce Shearn, addressed fellow Councillors at a meeting on Monday evening.

He said: “To say that I am disappointed at this decision is an understatement. We wanted it to go to Committee so the people of Radstock could have their say. It is a sad day for democracy. They have totally disregarded the people of Radstock.

“We should complain to B&NES that we deserve to have a say about this application. We need to be heard as much as anywhere else in Bath and North East Somerset.”

Additional documents that accompany the planning decision states that ‘Local planning authorities must determine applications on planning grounds only. They should not seek to prevent competition between different operators, question the need for electronic communications systems, or set health safeguards different from the International Commission guidelines for public exposure.

‘If the equipment is used as part of a 5G network, further assessment would need to be undertaken to ensure the equipment complied with relevant guidelines.’