She said: "Bit by bit, local democracy is being chipped away. And council leader Ian Thorn said: "She (Angela Rayner) famously said the big problem with planning is councillors. It’s a sad day for accountability. It’s a sad day for anyone in this country who wants to have a say about their local area." Cllr Jon Hubbard (Melksham South, Independent) called the legislation "an abhorrent, an absolute abhorrence, undermining local democracy.