Trump International Golf Club Scotland Ltd & Anor v Scottish Ministers [2015] UKSC 74
The point in plain English: Planning conditions and other public consents are interpreted objectively, in context and with common sense. There is no absolute rule that words can never be implied, but courts will be cautious because these are public documents which may affect third parties and carry enforcement consequences.
What happened
Trump International challenged consent for an offshore wind farm near its Aberdeenshire golf resort. One argument was that a condition requiring approval of a design statement was void because it did not expressly say the development had to be built in accordance with that statement.
The case arose under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 rather than ordinary town and country planning legislation.
What the Supreme Court decided
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal. Reading the consent and its conditions as a whole, there was an effective mechanism for the approved design statement to control construction.
Lord Hodge and Lord Carnwath also explained that public documents are interpreted by asking what a reasonable reader would understand the words to mean in context. Earlier statements suggesting there could never be an implied term in a planning permission were too absolute.
Why Trump International matters
The case is regularly cited beyond its Scottish electricity-consent context because of its explanation of how planning permissions and conditions should be construed. Clear drafting remains essential; implication is a restrained interpretative tool, not a licence to repair any defective condition.
See Planning Geek’s guide to planning conditions.
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