King’s Speech: Planning Bill unveiled to lift ‘brake’ on economic growth

A new Planning Bill unveiled in the King’s Speech is intended to lift the “major brake” on the UK’s economic growth, by unlocking housing and infrastructure projects across the country.

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will refocus development decisions on how, not if, homes and major projects are built.

It would streamline delivery for national infrastructure, including renewable energy and grid upgrades, reform compulsory purchase, and modernise local authorities’ planning capacity. 

Speaking from the House of Lords, King Charles said: “My ministers will get Britain building, including through planning reform, as they seek to accelerate the delivery of high quality infrastructure and housing [Planning and Infrastructure Bill]. 

“They will also pursue sustainable growth by encouraging investment in industry, skills and new technologies.”

While Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer vowed: “We will reform the planning rules to build the homes and infrastructure the country desperately needs.”

The bill is expected to mostly apply to England and Wales, with some measures taking effect in Scotland.

It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a slate of planning reform measures in her first speech, including reforming the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), restoring mandatory housing targets, and ending the ban on new onshore wind in England.

Making her speech at the Treasury, she pledged to “give priority to energy projects in the system”, create a new task force to address stalled housing sites, create 300 additional planning officers, and make benefit of development a central consideration for intervention.

Labour pledged in their manifesto to build 1.5m homes over the next Parliament, which equates to an average of 300,000 each year, including reallocating so-called grey belt, or low quality green belt, land.

But Sir Keir has said he expects to see this figure ramp up across the five-year term, as measures kick into effect.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden admitted planning reform “may be controversial” in places but said the government wants to “get things built more quickly”.

He told the BBC: “If we do nothing on this, we will continue with a situation where there’s a whole generation of young people for whom the aspiration of owning their own home, or sometimes even renting one at a reasonable price, will continue to be unrealisable.”