The government has put forward new proposals to speed up the planning process and boost house building by offering fast track application services…
The government has set an ambitious target to get the nation building new homes. In a bid to overcome a number of obstacles preventing development, the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is proposing new fast track application services.
If the proposals are successful, councils will be able to process planning applications and then offer fast track services.
Minister want to use pilot schemes to address the lack of incentive for councils to improve and speed up their planning services, thus leading to “drawn out applications and local frustration” for both housebuilders and individual applicants.
The proposals will give applicants the choice of whether to submit their plans to the local council, a competing council or a government approved organisation that would process applications up to the point of making a decision.
Councils will also provide a fast track planning application service via competition pilots or devolution deals. However, all decisions relating to the application would remain with the local council.
Speaking of the proposals, Planning Minister Brandon Lewis said: “Many councils are already working hard to improve the services they offer their residents, and across the country people’s satisfaction levels remain high.
“Now we want to go further by setting out these ambitious proposals to link any future increases in application fees to councils’ performance, and testing more competition including through offering dedicated fast track application services.”
This proposal has come around because research studies over the past three decades in the UK and abroad have revealed there are cost savings of up to a fifth for competitively tendered or shared services.
Today, the government has published a consultation on the competition pilots and fast track services. Within it are proposals to make any future increases in councils’ fees for processing planning applications dependent on their performance.
The news was welcomed by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), who said the fast track planning process was necessary to keep the nation building.
Chief executive Brian Berry said: “It’s very welcome news that the Government has listened to the concerns of industry over the sclerotic planning system.
“Across the country, SME house builders continue to be frustrated by a painfully slow planning process that is holding back the delivery of new homes.
“The numerous sources of delays and inefficiencies in the system impact upon house building rates, and act as a major deterrent to small developers who need to see speedy returns on their investments.
“Anything which encourages innovation and incentivises councils to deal with applications with greater urgency must be welcome.”
Berry continued: “Developers of all sizes have consistently said that they would be willing to pay higher planning application fees, provided the extra resources were ring-fenced to deliver a better quality service.
“The proposals announced today by the Government provide an avenue to house builders to access speedier planning that will allow them to get on with what they do best – building homes.”
Berry concluded: “Nevertheless, in order to ensure that the broader planning system is working as it should, it’s essential that it’s properly resourced.
“Local authorities need to be able to invest in their planning departments to put in place, and renew, their local plans.
“Fees, whether fast track or standard, need to be weighted to ensure that overall the system will be adequately resourced.
“The system as it stands is creaking – this new approach must be made to work and it cannot come soon enough.”