The government has introduced the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, with the remit of speeding up planning decisions to boost housebuilding.
Planning committees will be reformed, as applications will be separated by those which can be determined by officers, and those which should go to committee.
Meanwhile limits will be placed on the size of committees, while planning committee members will undergo mandatory training. Councils will be able to set their own planning fees to cover their costs.
Compulsory purchase process will be ‘improved’ when land is needed in the public interest. The reforms will make it easier to remove ‘hope value’ when compensating landowners, which is the value attributed to the prospect of planning permission being granted for a development.
Angela Rayner, deputy prime minister and secretary of state for housing, said: “We’re creating the biggest building boom in a generation – as a major step forward in getting Britain building again and unleashing economic growth in every corner of the country, by lifting the bureaucratic burden which has been holding back developments for too long.”
Other changes:
- Development corporations will be strengthened, which will play a role when the risk or scale of a development is too great for the private sector. The plan is to use these corporations to help deliver Labour’s ‘new towns’.
- A system of ‘strategic planning’ will look across multiple local planning authorities for the most sustainable areas to build, ensuring there is joined-up thinking between development and infrastructure needs. Plans will be produced by mayors.
- The bill aims to improve the National Significant Infrastructure Projects regime so consultation requirements for projects like wind farms, roads or railway lines are streamlined. Government decisions on projects can only be challenged once, rather than three, as it currently stands.
- People living within 500m of new pylons across Great Britain will get money off their electricity bills up to £2,500 over 10 years.
- Clean energy like wind and solar power will be prioritised for grid connections – sometimes it can take 10 years as it stands.
- A Nature Restoration Fund will enable builders to pool contributions to fund larger environmental interventions.
Reaction
Law firm
Kylie Wesson, planning partner at law firm, Shakespeare Martineau, said: “The development industry is breathing a sigh of relief today. For too long committee practice has slowed and stagnated planning decisions, with little oversight, intervention or accountability around decisions.
“A radical overhaul and the introduction of the national scheme of delegation is not only long overdue, but absolutely necessary to meet the ambitious housing targets set by the government last year. With so many flaws in the system, the government will have its work cut out to rectify them all at once.
“Member training has been a particular issue as it is not consistent, regulated or fit for purpose and is often treated as a ‘tick box exercise’. The new Bill attempts to address this, by making it a requirement for members to complete training which must be evidenced by a certificate valid for a set period, while members without will not be able to participate in decision making.
“As always, the devil will be in the detail but with suggestions of accredited training, it is hoped that this will be far more rigorous and set much higher standards of knowledge and consequently decision making, than the current regime.
“With these reforms set to reinvigorate the planning system, the government must now focus on winning hearts and minds in its war against ‘NIMBYism’, and set to work educating the public on the necessity of development in their backyard.”
Major mortgage lender
Graham Sellar, head of Santander for Intermediaries, Santander UK, said: “Today’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill is a long-awaited and welcome approach to how the government aims to achieve its housebuilding and infrastructure targets. It’s critical that its ambition is paired with action.
“In addition to considering fundamental issues such as affordability constraints, which play a key role in preventing would-be homeowners getting a foot onto the housing ladder, it’s important the government understands the broader needs of the population beyond just building more homes.
“Our recent research around New Towns showed that while over 85% of brokers are seeing an uplift in client interest in New Town developments, brokers report that clients are looking beyond just roofs over their heads.
“Among those expressing interest in New Towns, nine in ten brokers say access to medical facilities is crucial for their clients, other key factors include access to quality schools (88%) and robust transport links (87%).
“While we recognise the role that we as a lender can play to support more people get onto the housing ladder, such as by offering up to 95% LTVs on new build houses and flats and accepting financial incentives on all LTV borrowing, we must simultaneously grasp this opportunity to build the infrastructure needed, at pace, to deliver the full potential of the Bill’s ambition.”
Specialist lenders
Terry Woodley, managing director of development finance at Shawbrook, said: “The Planning and Infrastructure Bill should provide developers with a further injection of confidence for the year ahead. Shawbrook’s recent research showed that 59% of developers were already confident that 1.5 million new homes could be delivered in five years, which could rise further now the bill has provided more clarity.
“Key facets of the bill, like planning committees, development corporations and strategic planning elements should reduce red tape and streamline processes, which will play a crucial role in delivering the ambitious new homes target.
“However, whilst this is a positive move in the right direction, this doesn’t address the recruitment and training of additional planners, which will take time, or the skills shortage in the sector. The government must continue to prioritise effective, comprehensive planning overhauls to kickstart progress and unlock the UK’s full housebuilding potential.”
Ryan Etchells, chief commercial officer at property lender Together, said: “The Planning and Infrastructure Bill has been highly anticipated, and should remove unnecessary red tape that has essentially hog-tied developers of all sizes for decades.
“Overhauling outdated planning processes and supporting households reliant on new electricity sources should see a much-needed injection of investment and further help our lagging economy get back on its feet.
“While the big ideas are certainly exciting, what we need now is detail and a clear path forward. One hotly contested area being the environmental impact of loosening regulations – we want to see these 1.5m homes built and better transport links, but not at the expense of the environment and surrounding nature sites.”
Retirement village firm
Tim Seddon, chief executive of Retirement Villages Group, said: “After months of anticipation, there is much to welcome in the Planning & Infrastructure Bill, which I see as a positive step towards eliminating many of the long-standing barriers to building in this country.
“It’s encouraging to see an increased focus on ‘strategic planning’ to join up decision-making across local areas, as well as proposals to reduce the extent of consultation and number of stakeholders required for sign off on developments.
“But we must not forget older people’s needs in our push to build. I urge the government to work with the later living sector to make specific provision for building older people’s housing at scale. We have an ageing population, and the UK is not meeting the demand for high quality, age-appropriate housing solutions.
“Building more older people’s housing, including integrated retirement communities (IRCs), should be a key priority for local authorities when allocating land for building. This will help free up housing stock up and down the ladder, as well as allowing older people to thrive in later life, benefitting every generation.
“However, our industry understands that planning reform, however comprehensive, will not solve our housing shortages by itself. The cost of construction materials, coupled with a shortage of skilled labour, has made it even more difficult to build, and the government must have a plan to address these issues if we are to make significant progress in tackling the housing crisis. There is much more to do, but I see this Bill as a crucial first step along the way.”
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