Steve Morgan says 5,219 Redrow plots have been delayed as councils wait for final draft of new planning framework

A housing developer has accused councils of delaying approval of housing application while they wait for the final version of the government’s National Policy Planning Framework.
The government closed its consultation on the National Policy Planning Framework (NPPF) in October and is currently considering responses before publishing the final draft.

The NPPF promises to streamline planning applications by creating a presumption in favour of development in areas which have been marked for development in local plans.

Steve Morgan, chair of developers Redrow, in a statement to the company’s AGM, said: “Far too many local authorities are using the current hiatus as an excuse to impede and delay planning applications.”

 “As an indication of the present climate, Redrow alone has 30 live planning applications for 5,219 plots, which are either delayed beyond the 13 week statutory determination period or subject to appeal,” added Morgan.

He said the company was now only able to sell homes from 68 developments, compared with 74 at the start of the year. He argued this was because of planning delays, which have meant new sites have not been developed as others have come to completion.

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