25.05.2016
Housing and Planning Act 2016 - implications for planning
The Housing and Planning Act gained royal assent on 12 May 2016.
Once it is fully in force, the Act will give DCLG extensive new powers of intervention, which are intended to address the housing crisis by boosting the supply of new homes.
The Act includes provisions that:
- Allow for 'Planning Freedoms Schemes' that can dis-apply aspects of the national planning system
- Permit government intervention in the local plans process
- Enforce the introduction of starter homes
- Allow central Government to make regulations that change the enforceability of affordable housing obligations that have already been entered into by developers
In short, it could be interpreted as the death knell of the coalition Government's localism agenda.
The briefing, which is linked below, is five pages long. Whilst this is, admittedly, not short; it has the benefit of being significantly more concise than the Act itself.
If you would prefer a high quality version of the slideshare document please send me an email.