Deputy prime minister adds too much time wasted by ‘tiresome requirements and uncertainty’

The government has said amendments to the planning bill will halve the average two-year statutory pre-consultation period on major projects and could save £1bn during this parliament.

Announcing changes to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill earlier today, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “Burdensome statutory consultation requirements unique to major infrastructure projects will be scrapped.

“Amendments to the pro-growth Planning and Infrastructure Bill [will] cut down the average two-year statutory pre-consultation period by half, paving the way for new roads, railways, and windfarms that will bolster the country’s connectivity and energy security.”

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Source: MHCLG/Flickr

Deputy prime minister said amendments announced today could speed up infrastructure projects by up to a year

It added: “Developers currently spend significant time and money on long, technical documents resulting in communities feeling fatigued and confused, which is a direct result of overly complex planning rules that are leaving working people deprived of the things their areas need to thrive. It also disincentivises developers making improvements to projects for fear of having to re-consult.”

Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said the amendments would “strengthen” the bill and added: “We can’t afford to have projects held up by tiresome requirements and uncertainty.”

She said examples of red tape hold-ups included the three years in pre-application consultation for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset and the seven years and counting for Sizewell C on the Suffolk coast.

Mace executive chairman Mark Reynolds, who is also co-chair of the Construction Leadership Council, said: “Our planning processes have long been too overly bureaucratic, an inhibitor to construction and a prohibitor to growth.

“Whilst appropriate scrutiny is crucial, unnecessary delays incur costs to society and the government should be applauded for its bravery in this Bill, the results of which will open the door wider to private sector investment.”

Rayner added an application to build a new reservoir in Cambridgeshire had already spent more than 1,000 days in pre-application with the plans not due to be submitted until the end of next year.

Earlier this year, prime minister Keir Starmer unveiled plans to build more nuclear power plants across England and Wales by cutting red tape to make it easier to build them.

The government said a refreshed planning framework will help streamline the process to encourage investment and enable developers to identify the best sites for their projects.