REDDITCH councillors were last night set to pass a motion to allow townsfolk to air their views during planning meetings.

It will be the first time in the council's history that people will have the right to speak on planning applications.

And the pilot project will be trialed for a six-month period before it is reviewed on the level of its success.

Policy and resources committee chairman Councillor David Cartwright said: "If there is a planning application many people object to, then they can come and talk to us.

"Or, if somebody supports a planning application but others object, they can come and give us their views too."

People wanting to speak will have to inform officers before the meeting starts and they will then be allocated a three-minute time slot, the same as councillors themselves.

Mr Cartwright said: "They have tried it in many other areas, such as Stratford, and it has been very successful.

"There have been concerns in the past that there would be 20 or more people wanting to talk on one planning application."

He added: "It will certainly make meetings interesting but we'll have to make sure they don't go on for too long, which is why we are having a review in six months time.

"If they are going on for 10 hours at a time, we'll have to look at the structure of them."