Select committee: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Recommendation 5
First Report - The future of the planning system in England
Published 10 Jun 2021
Paragraph 45
Addressed to Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee The future of the planning system in England All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We welcome the Government’s proposal that having an up to date Local Plan should be a statutory requirement on local authorities. We also welcome the proposal that Local Plans should be more focused and shorter. But we do not agree that the 30-month timeframe proposed for the development of Local Plans is enough to ensure high quality. We are particularly concerned about the challenges the proposal poses for statutory consultees, especially as all plans will have to be addressed within the same timeframe. The Government should extend the 30-month timeframe for the initial production of Local Plans as it is too short for creating new plans from scratch. The Government must ensure that statutory consultees have time to comment on Local Plans. The Government should consider a staggered roll-out of the new types of Local Plans across the country. It should be permissible and straightforward to undertake quick updates of Local Plans every two years, including with appropriate time for public consultation. The Government should consider the case for confirming that the National Grid is a statutory consultee in new Local Plans.
From: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, First Report - The future of the planning system in England (HC 38), paragraph 45, 10 June 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 17 May 2022 (deadline 10 August 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response agrees with the Committee on a number of recommendations, including not pursuing the three areas proposal, while declining to extend the 30-month local plan timetable and having no plans for a national Green Belt review.
- It agrees with the recommendation on the three areas proposal and "will not be pursuing three area types in the reformed planning system".
- It "does not accept" the recommendation to extend the 30-month plan-making timeframe, stating that reforms make 30 months "achievable" and that it "will consult on the detail of these regulations in due course".
- On planning fees, it intends to increase them by 35% for major and 25% for minor applications, "subject to consultation", which it says will take place in the summer.
- On the Green Belt, it "has no plans for a national review" and says the National Planning Policy Framework's protections "will remain".