Falkirk Council: Telecoms company told phone mast must be removed from site in Braes village

A neighbour who lives very near the mast on Maddiston Road, Brightons, told members of Falkirk Council’s planning committee on Wednesday that the noise was “intolerable”.

Alan Mason pleaded with councillors to refuse planning permission saying that CK Hutchison Networks UK Ltd “don’t care about the individual or the planning process”.

Originally, the company had approval to put the mast and cabinets in a different site nearby but when they discovered a gas main, changed location without getting permission.

Mr Mason told the committee: “We hear it in the bedroom, we hear it in the garden – it’s really very intrusive,” he said.

In his deputation, he told member that he had complained to Falkirk Council’s planning department about the new location before any work took place.

The council had then warned CK Hutchison that if they continued to install the equipment without permission it would be “at their own risk”.

The company, however, went ahead with the work in May 2022.

Mr Mason says he wrote to the company to object but says he received no reply.

He then contacted Falkirk Council’s environmental health who installed monitoring equipment which confirmed there was a concern.

The council contacted CK Hutchison but Mr Mason told members that the company was “consistently evasive” and only responded when the planning department told them they would reject the application if they did not engage with the council.

Mr Mason added that the cabinet was attracting anti-social behaviour, saying the teenagers were using the cabinets to climb on the bus stop.

A year after his initial complaint, the company did agree to reduce the fan speed to mitigate the problem but Mr Mason said this “does not help me at all”.

He added that he felt the company “don’t care about the individual or the planning process – it’s just about getting the masts up”.

He told councillors: “I would like you to force them to remove it and reassess how they choose locations so it doesn’t affect people’s lives.”

Before making their decision, councillors had visited the site and Councillor James Kerr said this was crucial to the decision.

Councillors Gordon Forrest and Billy Buchanan both agreed they had never seen a monopole so close to housing.

Telecommunications companies have permitted development rights to set up masts and councils are limited in how they can review or challenge this.

But putting the mast in a different area from the site granted permission meant that the company did need planning permission.

But the planning officers also explained that the area 5G masts operate in is “incredibly small” which is why so many are now being put in residential areas.

Health concerns have been raised with regard to 5G masts but members heard that a certificate of safety was in place which is all they could ask for.

Councillors refused to grant planning permission because the equipment was creating an unacceptable noise, while the size and siting would have a detrimental impact on the visual amenity of the area.

Convener Billy Buchanan said: “We all need the technology but at the same time, it can’t be detrimental to the living standards of our constituents.”

The company can now appeal the decision, relocate the mast to the original site by moving the gas main or submit a new application for another mast nearby.