U.K. Shakes Up Planning to Accelerate Housing Market Recovery

(Bloomberg) -- The U.K. will overhaul its planning approval system for new homes, with the government focused on infrastructure to reboot an economy that’s bracing for what could be its deepest recession in three centuries.

Land will be approved for homebuilding when local development plans are passed, levies will be decided at a national level and better-designed buildings will have a fast-track system. Areas set aside for green space, a key issue for voters, will not be affected by the changes.

These are the biggest changes in the planning system in decades and echo Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s call for the country to “Build Build Build” to kick-start the economy. Home values have been boosted in recent years by government programs that stimulate demand rather than supply, making them too costly for local people in many areas.

Other measures being proposed:

• Some new homes will be offered for 30% less than their market value to locals, key workers and first-time buyers
• The government will consult on extending permission in principle to major developments so they can start sooner
• Every local authority will have to have a plan for building more homes

The District Councils’ Network, which represents 187 planning authorities across England, said on Sunday that the changes to the rules won’t deliver the boost the government expects because there are tens of thousands of homes with planning approval that have still not been built.

Consultations on the changes will close on Oct. 29.

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