Government Set to Unveil Planning Reform Bill to Supercharge UK Development

The UK Government has vowed to "unleash seismic reforms" in the nation’s planning system with the introduction of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which will be published on Tuesday. This sweeping legislation aims to streamline approvals, reshape developers' environmental obligations, and offer financial incentives to communities hosting critical infrastructure projects.

With Labour pledging to construct 1.5 million homes and fast-track decisions on 150 major infrastructure projects before the next election, the proposed bill introduces measures to simplify planning decisions. Under the new framework, planning officers will handle more applications instead of elected councillors. At the same time, council planning committees will be slimmed down to promote focused, compelling debate.

Additionally, local councils will gain the authority to set their planning fees, ensuring they can fully recover costs. Meanwhile, "meritless" legal challenges against significant developments will face tighter restrictions, preventing unnecessary delays in key projects.

A notable shift in environmental regulation is also on the horizon. Instead of requiring developers to fund small-scale, site-specific conservation efforts, the government plans to establish a nature restoration fund, allowing them to contribute to larger-scale environmental initiatives. This move is partly in response to past controversies, such as the £100 million "bat tunnel" that HS2 was forced to construct.

Residents living near newly constructed electricity pylons could receive up to £250 a year off their energy bills for a decade to win local support for infrastructure projects. Additionally, affected communities may see investments in leisure centres, parks, or other local amenities. However, these benefits will likely be offset by a slight increase in energy costs for other consumers—an amount expected to be only a few pence per household when spread across the country.

Despite the ambitious scope of the bill, many details remain under discussion. The Government has yet to finalize how the bill discount scheme for households near pylons will function or determine which planning decisions should be made by officers rather than councillors.

A public consultation will also explore removing specific statutory consultees, such as Sport England and the Theatres Trust, from the mandatory planning review process.

Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook assured that consultations will run parallel to the legislative process, allowing reforms to be implemented swiftly after the bill receives royal assent. He also emphasized that "the most significant and controversial" applications will continue to be decided by elected representatives, ensuring democratic oversight remains intact.

Sam Richards, CEO of the campaign group Britain Remade, welcomed the proposals, saying they would mean “more jobs for builders and less work for lawyers”.

But he added that there was a “risk” that the proposals would not “consign £120 million bat tunnels…to history”, saying: “Only when this is achieved will we have a planning system that truly backs the builds and not the blockers.”

Housebuilders welcomed the proposals, with Home Builders Federation chief executive Neil Jefferson describing them as “swift moves to address the failings in the planning system”.

He said: “Removing blockages, speeding up the decision-making process and ensuring local planning departments have the capacity to process applications effectively will be essential to getting more sites up and running.”

However, the proposed changes to environmental rules could prove contentious, with campaigners seeking to reject the argument that they act as “blockers” in the planning system.

Richard Benwell, CEO of the nature coalition Wildlife and Countryside Link, welcomed some aspects of Tuesday’s legislation but called for more enforcement to “ensure that unsustainable development can never proceed with impunity.”

He added: “For nature recovery and development to go hand-in-hand, the Bill should be strengthened with a guarantee that all planning decisions must be compatible with nature and climate targets, more protection for irreplaceable habitats and nature recovery areas, and new building regulations for biodiversity so that all infrastructure is wilder by design.”