A spokesperson for Merton Council said: “The GLA has decided to grant planning permission for AELTC’s proposed development.
“Just like the previous decision made by Merton Council to resolve to grant planning permission, acting in its capacity as a planning authority, the GLA has made a planning judgement based on planning policies.
“When the Council sold the land to AELTC in 1993, it imposed restrictive covenants to preserve the openness of the land. The covenants are intended to provide an added layer of protection for that openness over and above the protection afforded by the planning system.
“The planning system and property covenants are two separate things. And the granting of planning permission does not override the covenants nor make them unenforceable.
“It is only if and when a development has been granted planning permission that the covenants can perform their intended role. The proposed development does not protect the openness of the land so it would breach the covenants.
“When deciding whether to enforce the covenants, the Council is not acting as a planning authority and is not bound by any planning decision. Instead, the Council is free to decide whether it believes that sacrificing the openness of the land, and thereby defeating the purpose of the covenants, would be in the long-term interests of the locality.
“In the context of the current proposals, the Council has repeatedly stated that it intends that the covenants be respected.
“Whilst we recognise that AELTC’s plans have generated a lot of public interest, the Council is unable to say any more at this stage.”
