Roger Milne from Planning Portal reports that government scientific advisers have urged an independent review of the planning regime for mobile telephone masts.

That call has come from the National Radiological Protection Board (NPRB), which has just carried out a review on mobile phones and health, an update of the report produced in 2000 by professor William Stewart.

Professor Stewart, now the chairman of the NRPB (a scientific body which advises the government), said the planning process on base stations "needs to be revisited and updated".

He also made it clear he did not favour locating masts near schools.

The report highlighted inconsistencies and confusion over the planning arrangements and guidance used in different parts of the UK.

In Northern Ireland and Scotland the devolved administrations have largely adopted the Stewart Report recommendation that permitted development rights for the erection of masts less than 15 metres high should be revoked.

That is in contrast to England and Wales where a prior notification procedure has been adopted. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) has so far resisted calls to subject all masts to the full planning process.

The report claimed that "the application of guidance is very variable and that the extent to which the underpinning facts are presented can also be variable".

The NRPB urged an independent review of "best practice" and the effectiveness of codes of conduct, arguing strongly that there was a need for "much clearer and more readily understandable protocols and procedures" across the UK.

The board stressed the need for both consistency and openness in the way planning applications are handled.

The report also argued there was uncertainty over the planning regime for the installations used to "infill" the network and prevent "lost" calls, so-called microcells and picocells.

The NRPB called for "clarity in terms of legal responsibilities and regulations" in relation to these elements of the mobile phone infrastructure.

The ODPM has commissioned a study from the University of Reading and Arup to assess the impact the voluntary joint government/industry code of practice has had since its introduction and how the public perceives its operation. This study will report in March.

Meanwhile the mobile network operators have also commissioned an independent review of the 10 public commitments they made to consult and this study will be published later this year.

"These two independent studies will provide the government with evidence on whether the code has been effective and whether there are areas of weakness that need to be addressed," said an ODPM spokesperson.

Read the NRPB report 'A Summary of Recent Reports on Mobile Phones and Health (2000–2004)' here  (PDF 195Kb).