There’s been plenty of changes in the planning sector recently under the current government (many of us are still getting over the joys of two NPPF revisions in one year!). However, with the general election concluding bringing in a Labour government, greater change is coming.

In this article we look at the key planning related sections of the Labour manifesto launched on 13 June 2024. The manifesto has a clear ambition to ‘get Britain building again’ – with a focus on three proposed areas of reform, this article looks at what we can expect in the next few years under the Labour Party.

These areas are:

1. Housing
2. National Policy
3. Infrastructure

Housing

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you will be aware that we are amid a chronic housing crisis of undersupply. Although easier said than done, Labour’s intention to alleviate this crisis is to facilitate the delivery of 1.5 million new homes over the next five years, a number of which will be within entirely new towns. Although an express numerical objective has not been given, the housing target also includes a commitment to the provision of affordable homes, to be secured via ‘strengthened’ planning obligations.

The proposed method to unlock the delivery of such a vast number of homes is multi-faceted, but there will be a particular focus on:

• Development on ‘greybelt’ land: although developments on brownfield sites will be prioritised, there will be a shift in attitude towards the greenbelt. ‘Poor quality’ areas in the greenbelt, dubbed ‘greybelt’, will be released for development purposes under the Labour government.
• Greater powers for combined and mayoral authorities: along with a requirement for such authorities to strategically plan for housing delivery in their areas, they will also be given greater planning powers to affect such delivery.
• Unlocking the delivery of homes affected by nutrient neutrality. The issues with the current position on nutrient neutrality are well versed and go beyond the scope of this article, but Labour’s intention is to free up those homes affected by nutrient neutrality issues.

National Policy

Labour have made several promises in relation to national planning policy. These include:

• Immediately reverse the revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in 2023: many of the revisions last year came under fire for appearing to soften local authority housing targets. Labour intends to restore mandatory targets as a matter of priority.
• To ‘reform and strengthen’ the presumption in favour of sustainable development: the tilted balance generally applies to local authorities with a poor track record of housing delivery and/or supply. Where subject to the presumption in favour of sustainable development, local authorities are open to more speculative applications from developers and appeals. This generally leads to an increase in the number of permissions being granted.
• New national policy statements: intended to speed up and cheapen project delivery by reducing red tape.

Updating policy on the delivery of laboratories, digital infrastructure and gigafactories. Although currently sparse on details, we do know that these policies will be updated under a Labour government.

Infrastructure

On the delivery of major infrastructure, Labour has some transformational plans underpinned by a ten-year strategy. This strategy is intended to guide investments plans, speed up project delivery, and offer the private sector an element of certainty about the project pipeline. To help achieve this Labour intends to:

• Create a National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA): this new body will bring together ‘existing bodies, to set strategic infrastructure priorities and oversee the design, scope, and delivery of projects’. Labour’s intention is to merge the National Infrastructure Commission and Infrastructure and Projects Authority into NISTA with the purpose of better supporting “the delivery of major capital projects” (Darren Jones, Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, speaking at UKREiiF in May 2024).
• Overhaul the current transport infrastructure: Labour have committed to modernising the UK transport infrastructure with a focus on roads and railways. The manifesto commits the Labour party to renewing and maintaining the road network and fix an additional one million pot holes, should they come to power in July. The railway service will be brought into public ownership under Great British Railways. Labour are intent on reforming the entirety of the railway service, from connectivity improvements to station accessibility.

Final Thoughts

Labour’s planned changes to the planning sector are numerous (this article only covers a few, but other proposals such as the intention to provide funding for the appointment of 300 additional planning officers are certainly to be welcomed) and ambitious.

It is clear that, if implemented effectively, major change is coming to the planning world. The key theme that is present throughout Labour’s plans is a need to improve efficiency throughout the sector, to deliver projects faster and cheaper.

If Labour are serious about their proposals, they will need to implement changes extremely quickly. Just looking at their housing ambitions alone, the need to factor lead in times for planning and construction means that permissions for new residential developments need to be granted asap. As such, it would not be surprising to see ministerial statements and amendments to planning policy being made within the first month of the new administration.

One thing is for certain, we have an interesting few years ahead. Planning for changes under a new government in your business and need advice? Contact our Planning and Environment team to find out how we can support you.