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The ‘planning revolution’ in house building – consultation launched

  • by JW

Today’s ‘Planning for the Future’ white paper will change the way development happens.

“… unlike anything we have seen since the second world war”

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There are all sorts of questions around the government’s new proposals for the planning system:

The ‘planning revolution’ in house building – Vision Group for Sidmouth

And so the government is asking the public to answer a series of questions in a consultation launched today:

Planning for the future – GOV.UK

The overriding response is that it’s pretty massive:

One Consultation to Rule Them All – MHCLG Launches “Planning for the Future”, Nicola Gooch

As the Dezeen website points out:

The UK government has laid out proposals to speed up planning approval for developments, which prime minister Boris Johnson described as “unlike anything we have seen since the second world war”:

UK government reveals full extent of “radical” planning reform proposals

The housing industry has responded favourably:

Property industry reacts to landmark planning reforms

Inside Housing – News – Section 106 replacement will deliver ‘at least as much’ affordable housing, says government

Consultation to reform planning system launched – ARLA Propertymark

The Huffington Post is concerned about affordable housing:

Government Sneaks Out Plan That Could Cut Thousands Of Affordable Homes A Year | HuffPost UK

And the Independent reports how environmentalists are concerned that the government’s proposed reforms of the planning system will cost Britain decades in the fight against climate change and resign nature to “isolated fragments of land”:

Government’s ‘pitiful’ planning reforms ‘will cost Britain decades in fighting climate change’ | The Independent

Whereas The Spectator questions how ‘radical’ the proposals really are. Here’s the conclusion to today’s analysis of how the Prime Minister’s party will respond:

Today’s Planning for the Future white paper will change the way development happens…

The party at large has changed its attitude over the past decade, with much better recognition among MPs that they will struggle to convert younger voters to the Conservative cause if they fail to build more homes and make it easier for people to get on the housing ladder. But the emphasis on beautiful buildings in today’s white paper, along with a continuing commitment to the green belt (which, let’s remember, is not designated according to quality of land, but merely to stop urban sprawl) shows that the Conservatives haven’t become that much more liberal on planning. They still need to stick to certain shibboleths. The question is whether ministers have done enough of that to stop yet another Tory fight about building.

Will Boris’s planning shake-up end in another Tory fight? | The Spectator