Councillor remote attendance and proxy voting
The Government consulted last year on this subject and following considerations of the responses has decided to proceed as in their statement of 5th June 2025 here. On remote attendance, DHCLG plans to permit local authorities to develop their own locally appropriate policies, if they decide to hold remote meetings. On proxy voting for meetings of the full council, DHCLG plans to require principal (unitary, upper and second-tier) councils to implement proxy voting schemes, to provide consistency for members who are absent. Guidance will be provided.
Right of Appeal
People should be able to challenge a planning decision other than through the Courts. London Forum members are asked to contact their MP promptly and urge them to support two proposed new clauses NC37 and NC38 for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to be debated from Monday 9th June 2025. They would create a Third-party Right of Appeal where a local authority approves a development not in accord with the Local Plan. A control is that the Secretary of State may dismiss an appeal if it is vexatious, [more…]
Reforming Planning Committees
The Government could transfer decision-making power from Councillors to an un-elected planning officer on what applications are considered at committee. Conservation areas would not be protected. A Technical consultation here is open until 23rd July covering decision delegation, size and composition of planning committees and mandatory training. Two tiers of planning applications are proposed. For Tier A, “minor” developments and those up to 9 dwellings would be delegated to officers but in London that could be increased to 49 dwellings. A current Planning Working Paper [more…]
Chief Planner’s update
The MHCLG Chief Planner, Johanna Averley (pictured), has issued a newsletter to local authority planners. It covers a Modernised Planning Committees consultation and speeding up build-out with Completion Notices, a Delayed Homes Penalty and Compulsory Purchase Orders, as in a recent Working Paper and Technical Consultation.
The Government proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill amendments to remove the statutory requirement to consult in the pre-application stage for NSIP applications.
DEFRA is consulting on options for how Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) should be applied and MHCLG issued a related Working [more…]
Simplifying decisions
As London Forum reported, the Planning & Infrastructure Bill includes delegating planning decisions. The Government has issued a 15 question Working Paper consultation for
- Simplifying decisions for schemes below 10 homes to help small and medium builders (SMEs)
- Introducing a medium-sized site threshold up to 49 homes
There is another working paper on ‘Speeding up Build-out’ and for major developments, the Government is considering options for a mixed tenure development threshold at 500 units. Views on the right threshold are sought in this ‘Simplifying Decisions’ Working Paper. There will be [more…]
Planning and Infrastructure Bill debate
Labour members of the Commons Planning and Infrastructure Bill Committee voted through Clause 46 in that Bill for delegation of planning decisions. Government guidance is to be produced. Gideon Amos, LibDem MP, said “We are dealing with primary statutory legislation here, and there would be no discretion over its implementation. We are talking about giving him [Mathew Pennycook MP] and all future Ministers, of whatever party, the power to write the delegation arrangements for each local council in the country and tell them what they may or may [more…]
Build Out consultation
The Government issued a Planning Working Paper on ‘Building Homes Faster’, as reported on 25th May 2025. That has been followed by a Technical Consultation, open until 7th July, for the introduction of a new statutory build out framework and the power to decline to determine applications.
Building homes faster
The Deputy Prime Minister has urged developers to “Get on and build” as here.
The Government wants views on a Planning Reform Working Paper ‘Speeding Up Build Out’, with eleven questions.
Councils will get new powers to keep housebuilders on track with build rates set before planning permission is granted. Developers who repeatedly fail to construct approved schemes or trade land speculatively could face a new ‘Delayed Homes Penalty’, be locked out of future permissions or have their sites acquired by councils. Annual reports on progress will [more…]
Protecting nature could be weakened
The lawyer Simon Ricketts has published comments on the Government’s proposals in Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill for a Nature Restoration Levy to be paid by developers and the use of Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs). See the lawyer’s comments here. He points to evidence that organisations have given on the Bill indicating that there could be a weakening or reduction in current levels of environmental protection. Various detailed recommended changes have been submitted.
Smart Machines strategy
The Smart Machines 2035 Strategy provides a roadmap to position the UK as a global leader in robotics and Smart Machines. It highlights their transformative potential to address pressing societal challenges, enhance economic productivity, and establish national leadership in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. Also, the Government wants to explore how AI can change the way we conduct research.
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More social housing
Planning Fees consultation response
The Queen Elizabeth II Garden
What’s Happening to London’s Population?
An Historical Introduction
London’s population peaked in the 1930s, reaching about 8.6 million in 1939. For the next half century it fell steadily, to 6.8 million in the 1980s, before beginning to rise [more…]
Most Popular This Week
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Planning, Environment and Transport committee meeting
📅 Thu 11th June | 14:00 - 16:00
🚩 Room B1 70 Cowcross St, EC1M 6EJ (map)
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London Forum open meeting - Enforcement
📅 Mon 29th June | 18:30 - 20:30
🚩 77 Cowcross Street, EC1M 6EL (map)
Speakers and agenda to be confirmed
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