As the Labour government clocks up its first month in power, it is clear that ministers across the party are keen to get down to business quickly.
With a strongly worded review of the country’s finances laid out by new chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves and a consultation to review and improve the National Planning Policy Framework launched by deputy prime minister at secretary of state for housing, communities and local government Angela Raynor, Labour is now reaching out to sector specialists to make sure policy gets put into practice.
Over the past week, Rayner and housing secretary Matthew Pennycook have been contacting major players across the housebuilding and planning sphere in a bid to get them on side as they pledge to deliver 1.5m new homes.
Rayner has written an open letter to the metro mayors outlining the government’s housebuilding plans and the role that they will need to play in it.
In the letter she writes: “As regional leaders, you know how dire the situation has become and the depth of the housing crisis in which we find ourselves as a nation.
She adds: “Housing need in England cannot be met without planning for growth on a larger than local scale. This means enhancing your powers over strategic planning, to ensure that you can work together with your constituent authorities to deliver the housing and high-quality jobs that underpin local growth.”
Elsewhere with in the department, Pennycook has written to housing industry stakeholders and Lindsey Richards, the president of the Royal Town Planning Institute, to convey a “clear message on behalf of government to professional planners” – and in particular those serving in local authorities across England.
The letters detail the government’s proposed reforms to the NPPF.
Pennycook’s letter to housing stakeholders asks developers and investors to submit a response to the proposed changes to the NPPF, launched in Rayner’s House of Commons speech last month, within the eight-week period for consultation.
He writes: “The proposals it sets out speaks to concerns that many of you have raised directly with me: that instead of supporting sustainable growth, the planning system presents a barrier to high-quality development, failing to tackle a housing crisis which is crippling the aspirations of young people and leaves some of the most vulnerable without access to a safe and secure home.
“We said during the campaign that we would not duck the tough choices – I hope you will agree that today we are delivering on that promise by getting on with fixing the foundations of our housing system.”
The housing duo said the new proposals include the Labour government raising the overall target for homes built from 300,000 to approximately 370,000 per annum.
Pennycook also detailed Labour’s plans to review boundaries and release green belt land “where necessary to meet unmet housing or commercial need”.
He told housing stakeholders that large parts of the green belt had little ecological value and were inaccessible to the public, and that the development that happens under the existing framework can be haphazard – too often lacking the affordable homes and wider infrastructure that communities need.
Meanwhile, low-quality parts of the green belt, such as disused car parks and industrial estates, remain undeveloped.
He said: “We are defining grey belt land through reference to the specific reasons for which the green belt exists, so that it captures sites that are making a limited contribution to the green belt’s purposes, with additional guidance set out in the consultation.
“We want decisions on where to release land to remain locally led, as we believe that local authorities are in the best position to judge what land within current green belt boundaries will be most suitable for development. But we also want to ensure enough land is identified in the planning system to meet housing and commercial need, and so we have proposed a clear route to bringing forward schemes on ‘grey belt’ land outside the plan process where delivery falls short of need.
“To make sure development on the green belt truly benefits your communities, we are also establishing firm golden rules, with a target of at least 50% of the homes on site being affordable, and a requirement that all developments are supported by the infrastructure needed – including GP surgeries, schools and transport links – as well as greater provision of accessible green space.”
In his letter to the RTPI, Pennycook recognises the “critical role” planners play in unlocking growth across the UK.
Consultation on the NPPF closes on 24 September.
Photo by Toby Shepheard/Story Picture Agency/Shutterstock (14327683a)
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