- Ahead of the Budget and Spending Review London Property Alliance calls for funding commitment to ensure councils have capacity and skills to support increase in development needed to meet housing and growth targets.
- Government data shows that only 21% of major planning applications are decided within the statutory 13 weeks.
The London Property Alliance (LPA), which represents the leading real estate developers and investors in central London, has called for the Chancellor to include a funding plan for planning departments in the Budget and Spending Review to ensure there is the capacity to support the increase in commercial and residential development required to the achieve the Government’s ambitious housing and growth targets.
The English planning system is currently managed by 326 different local planning authorities that process more than 3.5 million planning applications every year. Planning applications are becoming ever more complex due to requirements for additional technical detail and environmental assessments, leading to longer decision times.
Statistics released by the Government in March 2024 showed that between July and September 2023 only 21% of major applications were decided within the statutory 13 weeks, with the average determination time estimated to be 28 weeks.
Planning delays are contributing to a slowdown of development in central London. Analysis by the LPA has shown that the number of major applications determined in the Central London Activities Zone in the 10 years to 2023 was 54% lower than the preceding decade. A survey of developers and investors undertaken earlier this year by the LPA found 40% had experienced significant planning delays on projects to upgrade office buildings.
In its pre-Budget representations, the LPA highlighted in a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves that the ‘under-resourcing of the planning system and policy uncertainty are preventing councils from making speedy, well-informed decisions’, restricting housing delivery as well as the development of critical infrastructure and the high-quality workspace needed to attract and retain leading businesses and drive growth.
In order to ensure the planning system is equipped to accelerate development of homes and vital workspace the LPA is calling for:
- Funding for local authority planning departments to be ringfenced in the Spending Review.
- Any increase in planning fees is reinvested in planning departments.
- Government to commit additional funding to bolster planning departments and skills.
Charles Begley, Chief Executive, London Property Alliance, said: “The Government has rightly identified the need for reform of the planning system, but as part of this there must be a compete step-change in how planning departments are treated.
“Alongside policy reform, we need a real commitment from Government to invest in planning skills and resources, reflecting the vital role departments play as enablers of inward investment.
“In London, and in cities across the UK, we are facing a shortage of the high-quality, sustainable workspace favoured by leading businesses. We will not be able to grow the high-productivity sectors identified in the Industrial Strategy or attract world class talent if we do not properly resource the planning system and accelerate development to meet this demand.”
The LPA’s full pre-Budget representations also call for:
- Ring-fence income for planning departments to ensure the recruitment and retention of planners needed to support development.
- Extend Business Rates (NNDR) relief via sector-specific multipliers for retail and hospitality businesses beyond 2025 to help support shops and pubs.
- Consider an Online Sales Tax (OST) as part of your NNDR review to provide a fairer system for bricks and mortar retail and to protect our high streets.
- Further fiscal devolution for London to align it with other metropolitan areas, enabling it to plan and deliver over the longer-term.
- Provide a long-term sustainable funding framework for Transport for London as improved connectivity is proven to drive economic activity.
- Undertake a comprehensive, independent assessment of the full impact of ending tax-free shopping for international visitors.
- Provide tax incentives and grant funding to support public /private partnership, and a more sustainable built environment.
