The Planning and Infrastructure Bill has landed! 🛬
With its second reading in the House of Commons yesterday (just 24 hours after the first!) the bill is beginning to rapidly make its way through Government as a key piece of legislation in trying to overhaul the planning system.
Bringing forward ambitious reform to the planning sector, the implementation of the following four points will be key in evaluating how successfully the P&I Bill can help unlock development across the country, with a strong focus on planning committees and Local Authority funding in particular.
💰 Local Authorities will now have the power to set their own fees for planning applications (subject to minimum and maximum thresholds). This should allow planning fees to accurately reflect regional variations in development pressure and costs.
💰 These fees will now be ringfenced, meaning that the cash generated by planning departments will stay in planning departments, rather than disappearing into a potential black hole of Local Authority finances. It is hoped this will begin to address the current £362 million annual shortfall across Local Authority planning departments.
💬 A National Scheme of Delegation will set standards on which applications can be considered by committee and which should be delegated to the planning professionals. This will place greater power in the hands of trained officers, many of whom are RTPI members and have significant experience in the industry.
💬 Mandatory training will also be introduced for all Councillors who sit on planning committees to ensure they have an appropriate grasp of the relevant issues and a greater understanding of planning law and legislation. This will also help to protect Councils from leaving themselves open to straightforward approvals and cost awards at appeals – a time consuming and expensive process.
