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Planning reform confirmed in King’s Speech as government bids to speed up housebuilding
The government has confirmed that new laws will be introduced to reform the planning system to speed up building homes “of all tenures”.
In today’s King’s Speech, a new Planning and Infrastructure Bill was announced, which is aimed at “unlocking more housing”.
A briefing document, published following the speech, said the proposed legislation will “speed up and streamline the planning process to build more homes of all tenures and accelerate the delivery of major infrastructure projects”.
It said change was needed as the current planning regime “acts as a major brake on economic growth”.
Labour has put tackling the planning system, and in turn the housing crisis, at the centre of its bid to drive economic growth now it is in government. It has pledged to build 1.5 million new homes over the course of the parliamentary term.
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Full details on the new laws are still be unveiled.
However, the briefing document said the legislation will improve local planning decision by “modernising planning committees”, without giving further detail.
The changes are also promised to boost local planning authorities’ capacity, to “improve performance and decision making, providing a more predictable service to developers and investors”, the document said.
The current government has previously said it will help councils to recruit 300 extra planning officers.
In a nod to biodiversity net gain, the bill said there will also be a move to use development to “fund nature recovery where currently both are stalled”.
The government said it will work with nature delivery organisations, stakeholders and the sector over the summer to “determine the best way forward”.
But the briefing document added: “We will only act in legislation where we can confirm to parliament that the steps we are taking will deliver positive environmental outcomes.”
Rules around the compensation from the compulsory purchase of land will also be reformed to ensure compensation is “fair but not excessive”, the document said, in a reference to the issue of hope value.
“The reforms will help unlock more sites for development, enabling more effective land assembly, and in doing so speeding up housebuilding and delivering more affordable housing, supporting the public interest,” it said.
The government has also promised that the bill will streamline the “delivery process” for critical infrastructure including “accelerating upgrades to the national grid and boosting renewable energy”.
The majority of the new laws are expected to apply to England and Wales, but some may be extended to Scotland.
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