Today I have submitted a response to the Government’s Planning For the Future consultation, welcoming plans to modernise and speed up planning processes, but also highlighting the need for planning policy change to deliver on our commitments of increasing house building, environmental protection and levelling up across the UK.
In particular I am calling for calculations of housing requirements to take development constraints, such as Green Belt and areas of high flood risk, into account. I have also highlighted concerns over the potential cumulative impact of automatically approved development, and support retaining greater local input to protect the character of our communities and local environment. For those who breach planning rules, there should also be swifter penalties for the worst offenders.
Our communities need quality housing tailored to local needs. This planning consultation sets out an ambitious plan for the reform of the planning system and how we can deliver this for generations to some. I am pleased to have been able to feed in my views on how we can ensure this vision delivers the results our communities both need and deserve.
My full submission is attached below. The consultation document is available here. The consultation remains open until 29 October.
