Chapter 4: Grant and Implementation of Planning Permission Section 110: Material variations in planning permission Background
Sections 73 and 96A of the TCPA 1990 provide powers to vary or remove planning conditions attached to grants of planning permission and make non-material amendments to a planning permission, respectively.
	However, the existing framework for varying planning permissions is often seen as confusing, burdensome, and overly restrictive by applicants and local planning authorities. Recent case law has compounded these issues.
	This section introduces a new route to vary an existing planning permission to allow greater flexibility for making non-substantial changes to planning permissions (including to the descriptor of development and imposed conditions) and will help address the complexities described above. Planning permission under the new power will only be permitted where the local planning authority is satisfied that its effect will not be substantially different from that of the existing permission.
	This will enable sensible and practical changes to be made to planning permissions which are not possible under the existing framework without the submission of multiple applications under different routes. For example, if an applicant wanted to make a material variation to a planning condition and consequently needed to amend the descriptor of development to accommodate, this would necessitate applications under both sections 73 (to vary the condition) and 96A (to amend the descriptor).