Plans have been approved to build 1,500 new homes in the Cairngorms National Park.

Planning permission in principle has been granted for the new An Camas Mòr community by the Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA).

Previous proposals for the new community, featuring business and community facilities as well as the necessary infrastructure, was granted in March 2014.

However earlier this year, applicants An Camas Mòr LLP submitted an application to vary the wording of condition 1 – which restricts development to 630 new homes until a review of the impact the development is having on the landscape and ecology is completed.

The application before the CNPA Planning Committee sought to vary that condition and create a more clearly phased development with extended timescales for the submission of future detailed information. Park Authority planning officers have recommended the application for approval stating that there have been no significant changes to policy or circumstances since the Planning Permission in Principle was granted in 2014.

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Amongst a number of changes to conditions, members agreed that a new bridge for pedestrians and cyclists must be delivered before 200 homes are occupied.

Gavin Miles, Head of Planning and Communities said: "Having appraised the application, the proposed development is acceptable and complies with Local Development Plan policies. We are however recommending a suite of conditions and other measures that will manage the development.

"There is a requirement for the applicant to demonstrate that there is not a significant impact on landscape and ecology and to prove there will be no significant adverse effects to capercaillie in Badenoch and Strathspey as a result of the proposals before any development can start."

Committee Convener, Eleanor Mackintosh, added: "I am happy to support the recommendation to approve the Section 42 application but would now urge the applicants to conclude the necessary legal agreements in a timely manner so that the new Planning Permission in Principle can be issued, then come forward with the necessary applications and supporting information to move the proposals on to the next stage.

"The applicant still has to supply a very significant amount of detail to this Planning Committee before An Camas Mòr becomes a reality but I am confident that this new permission gives us, as the planning authority, more control and the developer more clarity."

(LM/MH)