A new bill aimed at speeding up the planning process has been branded “light and optimistic” by industry experts.
The Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill, formally announced by the Queen during the state opening of parliament on Wednesday, is intended to help the government deliver one million new homes in England by 2020.
However, Carl Dyer, head of planning at Irwin Mitchell, said the target was “light” because studies suggest at least 250,000 homes a year were needed
to address the shortfall, and
“optimistic” because government figures showed there were
only 143,560 completions last year.
Measures to make the compulsory purchase process faster were broadly welcomed by planners. However, Dyer said the government was “missing an opportunity” to speed up the CPO process further by offering landowners an uplift on market value to speed up the delivery of infrastructure projects.
Martin Curtis, associate director at consultancy Curtin&Co, said strengthening neighbourhood plans would be a positive measure, as long as they were not used as a tool for preventing development.
If used correctly, the changes could help to prevent nimbyism around applications, he added.
Restrictions on councils’ use of pre-commencement planning conditions were welcomed by the British Property Federation. However, chief executive Melanie Leech said the industry needed more detail on how they were going to be enforced and how already-stretched local authorities would cope.
“Conditions for development should be agreed as part of the pre-application process, and we would hope that the planning process is not made over-complicated to compensate,” she added.
Industry reacts to the bill
Property figures evaluate the key aims of the Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill.
Click here to read the full reaction
- Strengthen neighbourhood plans and improve process for reviewing and updating plans
“It may help to prevent some of the very specific nimbyism around specific applications.”
Martin Curtis, associate director at Curtin & Co and former leader of Cambridgeshire County Council
- Speed up compulsory purchase orders with new compensation framework
“The current system is slow and cumbersome. A new framework… would be a seismic shift.”
Jeremy Blackburn, head of UK policy, RICS
- Establish National Infrastructure Commission: to provide government with expert, independent advice on infrastructure issues and unlock growth across the UK
“Extremely welcome.”
Melanie Leech, chief executive, BPF
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