17th July 2024
After 14 years of Conservative government, Labour is now at the helm. We take a look at the implications a Labour government has for local and national planning policy.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined a plan to ‘rebuild Britain’ in her first speech as Chancellor on 8th July, with an aim to build 300,000 homes a year. Yesterday’s King’s Speech announced 40 bills focusing on housebuilding, fiscal responsibility, growth, devolution and energy. In line with the commitment to unlock house building came an announcement of new compulsory purchase rules to help Councils assemble the land needed to deliver developments.
One of the changes announced was an immediate reform of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which sets out the Government’s planning policies, and is set for consultation before the end of the month. The new NPPF is likely to reverse a lot of the recent changes introduced by the previous government, including reinstating mandatory housing targets and strengthening the presumption in favour of sustainable development. This gives developers and landowners more leverage to achieve planning permissions where local authorities do not have an up to date local plan, or are failing to deliver on their housing targets.
There is also likely to be mandatory reviews of green belts, and a big increase in support for infrastructure projects, including for onshore wind, which was made almost impossible under recent planning reforms. The government have promised a new task force for unlocking stalled developments, which includes Northstowe just across the border in Cambridgeshire. In addition to releasing funds to hire 300 new planning officers (around 1 per local authority), it is quite clear that the government is putting housing and infrastructure at the centre of its policies.
The King’s Speech also announced a push for combined local authorities to prepare local plans together. This is not new and has been done many times before – a good local example being the Greater Norwich Local Plan, covering South Norfolk and Broadland. They do often run into practical challenges, so it remains to be seen how much this will change the local plan landscape. Their commitment to devolution will be an important part of this, giving more power to local leaders to direct spatial growth in their areas.
Angela Rayner, Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, has already overturned two refused planning appeals for data centres. Having grown up in social housing, Rayner is likely to push policy reform which allows the delivery of more social housing. This could include more support for new towns, similar to those delivered under the 1945 Labour government after WWII. Rayner has spoken of unlocking housing which is stalled by Nutrient Neutrality, but has not clarified how this will be achieved.
Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook will be supporting Rayner. He was heavily involved in the Renters Reform Bill, which sought to increase security for renters and remove no-fault evictions.
There has been no particular mention of rural housing delivery, nor whether there will be any changes to planning policy which relates to farms (such as Class Q).
What about in our area?
Norfolk and Suffolk saw considerable change in the election, notably with Green MP Adrian Ramsay taking the Waveney Valley seat, Reform UK winning in Great Yarmouth, and Lib Dems taking North Norfolk.
Nutrient Neutrality is arguably the most significant obstacle facing the sector in Norfolk, so how Labour strikes the balance between its environmental policies and its commitment to unlock housing development will be crucial for our area.
What are our thoughts?
The changes announced are certainly bold, and in line with what would be expected of a Labour government. A commitment to facilitating housing development is very welcome, and the new government seems to understand what is required on a legislative level to make this happen. Though likely to prove unpopular, new compulsory purchase powers are essential if the government wants to deliver enough affordable housing, though it is unclear whether they plan to overhaul the current system where registered providers (not Councils) deliver the housing.
In our area, Nutrient Neutrality is a huge constraint to development, and striking the balance between their commitment to environmental responsibility and unlocking housing development will be a difficult task.
Written by Jasmine Philpott, Senior Planner and Development Surveyor
