A planning chief has said the government is dictating to them as big changes come into effect next month.

And a Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council (SMBC) planning officer has apologised elected members won't now see controversial planning applications that had been raised as time has run out.

From the end of this month councillors nationally on planning committees will only be allowed to decide on the biggest applications, with a presumption all decisions will be made by council planning officers unless strict guidelines are met.

Ahead of the changes an extra planning committee meeting was squeezed into the schedule on October 21.

After the committee had considered five applications at the end of that four hour meeting attention turned to a presentation on the introduction of the government's 'national scheme of delegation' for planning applications.

Officer Mark Andrews explained councillors would no longer have the power to 'call in' applications to the planning committee – a tool they regularly use.

And in a further blow he confirmed the council can no longer use a defined number of objections to trigger an item going in front of the committee.

The officer said: "I appreciate there is a lot to take in.

"Where we are as officers, I think this is going to be a bedding in process.

"Once this comes into effect it is a completely different way of working to determine applications.

"The reason we have had an additional planning committee was to provide the opportunity, when applications have been called in by members or they have met specific triggers – there was an opportunity to get some more of those applications through.

"There are applications that members have called in where those call-ins will no longer be able to be honoured."

The officer reassured the committee they would "take full regard" to concerns raised by members and residents in determining applications.

Cllr Bob Grinsell, chairman of the committee, told committee members the changes wouldn't mean they would be "let off the hook".

"Maybe the load will be lessened, but it will be equally as onerous," he said.

Cllr Michael James said: "I'm having a bit of a moan – it's almost like the decision is being made for us.

"Its slowly becoming a room where we don't make the decision, we are here to accept the decision.

"It's a rubbish situation we have been left with, we have to accept."

Cllr Grinsell said: "You are spot on, it's a dictate from the government.

"They are even suggesting some of this as well goes to the combined authority mayor.

"It is wrong from the residents' perspective here in Solihull – the full decision process is being eroded."

Cllr James Bradley, the committee's vice chairman, said: "There is a lot of upheaval in the planning process at the moment.

"Would I be right in saying of the agenda we had today three agenda items we probably wouldn't have actually seen?"

Mr Andrews confirmed three of the applications they determined for three small housing developments of less than 10 homes, wouldn't go before the meeting in future.

Following a question from Cllr Prish Sharma on objections raised by residents Mr Andrews replied: "We can't specifically have regard to the number of representations received.

"If for example it is a householder application and we were to receive 150 objections, we still couldn't bring that to the planning committee. It has to be a delegated decision.

"What I would like to think in that situation, it is likely there is a significant issue with that application.

"It is certainly something we would have regard to as officers and it may be refused."

Councillors agreed to approve the changes to their planning committee handbook so that it is in line with government changes.