Thursday September 11th 2025
Area for approved mobile phone mast in Uphall, West Lothian
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Stuart Sommerville
Plans for a gigantic mobile phone mast have been approved by West Lothian Council – after developers warned refusal would simply see them build an even bigger one.
The planned new telecoms mast in Uphall will upgrade facilities which have already been in place for 20 years, it was claimed.
And the application for a 56ft (17m) – five storey high – mast was a concession, councillors heard this week – with the industry standard now 74ft (22.5m).
Councillors accepted the argument but bridled at the “insulting” tone of the applicants’ response – which said that if refused they would simply build a taller mast under permitted development rights.
An agent for Dalcour MacLaren argued that the 17m mast was a concession because the site in East Main Street, Uphall, is a conservation area.
He added: “That’s is pretty unusual for the industry anywhere in 2025. Everything now is based on connectivity and improving capacity.”
Mobile telecoms network capacity demands meant “taller and bigger masts”, he added.
He said the planning application had been made because the applicants had had to change the design of the Uphall site.
Labour’s Tom Conn told a meeting of the Development Management Committee that the applicants should have explained themselves better at the outset.
Criticising the response from an agent for Dalcour MacLaren, a utilities company, Councillor Conn said that at the beginnings of the industry telecoms firms had worked with communities, citing instances of a mast being disguised as a tree in an Edinburgh conservation area.
As the industry has developed that readiness to work with local authorities had changed, he suggested. He added: “They should explain what they’re doing and why they’re doing it.”
In a letter to the DMC an agent for Dalcour MacLaren said: “Please be advised that, should this application be refused at Committee, the applicant retains a fall-back position where they will redesign the placement of the apparatus to ensure that the new mast sits within 6 metres of the existing.
“In such an instance, a new mast could be deployed under PD [Permitted Development] rights, up to a height of 22.5m, without needing any permission or planning approval.”
Councillor Tony Boyle branded the response “a bit intimidating”, while Councillor Conn said it was insulting to the committee which had legitimate concerns, and bad PR from the telecoms industry.
He added: “I find that insulting. We did have concerns and we’d had a conversation about it, and we’re basically getting told if you refuse we’ll use permitted rights.”
Chair of the committee, Councillor Harry Cartmill said: “That’s a point well made.”
The agent said that 22m masts were now standard. He added that the current 15m mast in Uphall had been in place for 20 years.
Asked if a new mast would eventually have to be replaced with an even taller one, in 15 or 20 years, he said wouldn’t be able to answer that.
The DMC had put granting permission on hold at its July meeting because it felt that it had not been explained properly why the new mast could not be erected in the same place as the original.
The new site moves a mast 27ft closer to a piece of public art, “Above and Below,” which celebrates Uphall’s transition from an agricultural village to become the heart of the shale mining industry.
The initial DMC meeting was told that the applicant was asked by planning officers whether the siting of the new mast could be on the precise footprint of the existing one.
They were told this was not technically feasible because of the location of existing cabinets, HSE requirements and continuation of mobile phone service provision during construction works.
Councillors had expressed concerns about the maintenance of shabby equipment cabinets and the village community council had also objected.
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