NEW The National Audit Office has said an “imbalance in capacity and capability between the public and private sector” means developers can “manipulate” their viability assessments to cut infrastructure contributions More 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1920...

🚨 One of the government's own advisors on biodiversity net gain has raised concerns about its proposal to exempt small housing schemes from the duty www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1919...

NEW The government has proposed that residential schemes of up to 9 homes be exempt from biodiversity net gain in order to speed up construction More 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1919...

76% of planning committee members in England say gov’s 1.5m homes target is “unachievable”, a survey by SEC Newgate finds -33% cited a shortage in construction skills as the main blocker -19% blamed the “negative impact of perceived developer land-banking” www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1919...

from all the calls I have been getting from journalists Reform UK seem to be quoting an @instituteforgovernment.org.uk explainer from 2021 www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/article/expl...

With @reform-uk-official.bsky.social‬ now in control of 9 councils and 2 mayoralties, I've been investigating how much planning power it wields, the kinds of schemes it may back or block and what Reform control means for planning officers in those councils🧵 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1918...

Bats and newts did not cause planning delays last year, new research by @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social and @rspb.bsky.social‬ suggests Analysis of 17,433 planning appeals in England in 2024 found newts were relevant in 140 (0.8%) of cases and bats in 432 (2.48%) www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

NEW Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, has announced he will “actively explore” releasing bits of London's green belt for development Khan claimed GB “can often be low-quality land” that is “rarely enjoyed by Londoners” He opposed building on it until 2024 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1917...

'The climate movement is experiencing a lull. We must broaden our tactics if we are to maintain popular support and reframe the narrative.' Check out our latest article from writer and community activist, Joe Attlee. Please like and share 🌿 www.gndmedia.co.uk/articles/sab...

The government's proposal to cut a requirement for developers to consult on major infrastructure schemes before submitting an application is a “panicked misstep” that would be “disastrous for the natural world”, warns @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1916...

🚨 A planning barrister and a member of the House of Lords has been sanctioned by Russia, after calling for the government to seize Kremlin state assets in the UK to support the Ukrainian war effort www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1915...

Some more info on gov's new towns: - “Preferably 60,000 homes” in size - A “pledge” that 40% of homes will be social and affordable - Proposed locations kept under close wraps to avoid land values soaring and giving early warning to local opponents www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Planning deregulation carries serious political risks for Labour ✍️ @chrishinchliff.bsky.social

The Wildlife Trusts (@the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social) has put forward series of amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill that it wants to see ministers take forward to ‘plug the gaps’ currently in the legislation. Here’s what you need to know ⬇️

🚨The planning minister Matthew Pennycook has flatly rejected Oldham Council's request to leave Places for Everyone, GM's joint spatial strategy Cllr Howard Sykes, leader of the council’s opposition Lib Dem group, dubbed decision “a betrayal of democracy” www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1913...

Journalists in Victorian Bristol didn't do investigative reporting until James Crosby - "Gentleman James" - decided to have a go. thebristolcable.org/2025/03/how-...

“There is no such thing as an ‘illegal immigrant’” My myth-busting piece for The Guardian today arguing that it is factually inaccurate & totally, utterly wrong to say that undocumented people are ‘illegal’ & are automatically ‘criminals’. I bring receipts:

Exclusive: The plan to make Sadiq Khan share power in London - by copying Andy Burnham and Greater Manchester. www.londoncentric.media/p/the-plan-t...

A former elected city mayor, a city council planning assistant director and an ex-planning officer and are among 12 people that have appeared in court to face bribery and public office misconduct charges Full story 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1912...

The OBR has predicted that the gov's changes to the National Planning Policy Framework will push housebuilding to its highest level for 40 years, but that the gov will ultimately miss its target to deliver 1.5m new homes this parliament by 200,000 homes www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1911...

Just the sheer, obscene spectacle of a Government minister on £160K+ plus expenses and all the freebies, coming for the sub £10K per year that my son gets in PIP - being autistic & learning disabled in a deeply unequal, discriminatory & hostile society is not a “lifestyle choice”

Andy Burnham sounding very confident here re getting upwards of £200m in the spending review for the Old Trafford regen project on.ft.com/41NBRBB

17 freedom of expression and human rights organisations, including FairSquare, have written to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, calling for the UK to intensify efforts to secure British-Egyptian writer Alaa Abd el-Fattah’s release. www.englishpen.org/posts/campai...

NEW Andy Burnham says the Greater Manchester Combined Authority has agreed “in principle” to a mayoral development corporation delivering the new Manchester United stadium and wider regeneration of Old Trafford, and that it has “the backing of government” www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1910...

NEW Heidi Alexander, transport secretary, has said she is “minded to approve” Gatwick airport expansion but has delayed a formal decision by nine months Gatwick’s plans include bringing its emergency runway into regular use and extending both terminals www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1908...

Developers have gained planning permission for over 1.4m homes since 2007 but left them unbuilt, @ippr.bsky.social research shows Recommendations include new laws to force them to build within a certain time frame of securing permission or face sanctions www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1906...

🚨 Manchester City Council has approved plans for the former Central Retail Park in Ancoats: - A 3-hectare government office 'campus' that would house 7,000 civil servants - A 0.9-hectare park www.placenorthwest.co.uk/go-ahead-sec...

NEW A council’s planning committee has narrowly voted to approve 420 homes on the green belt, after planning officers advised the site met both the new definition of “grey belt” and the gov’s “golden rules” for releasing such sites for development More 🔽 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1906...

England had more than 700,000 vacant homes in October 2024, of which around 265,061 were empty long-term. “A serious look at vacancy ... and its contribution to the housing crisis is an essential precursor to building our way out of it.” www.ft.com/content/a01c...

It is well worth reading @peteapps.bsky.social on how the current Labour government's plans for New Towns differ from - and fall far short - of those delivered by the 1945-51 Labour Government: open.substack.com/pub/peteapps...

Oldham's own planning officers say “there are no powers” for a council to undo the decision to adopt a spatial strategy once it takes effect As such, the “council cannot legally withdraw from PfE on its own”. It can only ask Rayner revoke it. Unclear how that would work

🚨 Oldham Council has voted to ask Angela Rayner if it can withdraw from Places for Everyone, Greater Manchester's long-term spatial strategy that it adopted along with 8 other councils last year One councillor called PfE “a profit- and developer-led plan” www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1906...

Labour have approved 3.18GW of solar since returning to power last July, while the previous Tory government approved 943MW between 2019 and 2024

NEW Ed Miliband has granted development consent for two huge solar farms in the same county Between them they would supply 980MW – enough to power around 244,000 homes www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1905...

NEW The government’s idea of re-designating "low quality" green belt as "grey belt" in a bid to boost development has been rendered "redundant" by wider planning changes, a Lords built environment committee has said More 🔽 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1905...

80% of local authorities are operating at below planning capacity, Home Builders Federation finds It says gov's pledge to hire 300 new planning officers “represents less than 15% of the current shortfall”, which it puts at 2,200 officers in England + Wales www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1905...

Where did all the voters go? 📺 IPPR's Dr Parth Patel tells the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee that we are getting awfully close to the tipping point where elections lose legitimacy because the majority did not take part.

Of the £100m, £51m was announced in the Budget: - £46m to hire 300 new planning officers - £5m for improvements to infrastructure planning regime The remaining £50m is “expected funding” generated from the increase in planning fees which the government announced in December

EXC 🚨 The government has admitted to me that an “additional £100 million of cash” for council planning departments that it announced in December is in fact “not new funding”. Full story 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1904...

NEW Rachel Reeves has revived government support for an Oxford-Cambridge ‘growth corridor’ She reveals there have been 18 proposals for new towns along East-West Rail, which runs between the two cities www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1904...

🚨 Rachel Reeves confirms the government supports a third runway at Heathrow Sadiq Khan remains opposed: “I’m simply not convinced that you can have 100,000s of additional flights at Heathrow every year without a hugely damaging impact on our environment.” www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1904...

🚨EXCLUSIVE The UK’s biggest housebuilder has said it has restarted three planning applications that it had previously shelved over viability concerns, after the government softened its "golden rule" for providing affordable housing on green belt More ⤵️ www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1903...

Residents win five-year campaign to build a community-led housing scheme, after the local council agrees to sell the site Plans include 263 homes "with at least 30% being affordable" www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

#fixingthefoundations and UK 'Growth missions'? Look like every other growth mission over last 20 years. Pro business chatter, talk of reducing 'red tape'. No talk or action on wealth extraction, misallocation of capital or creaking public service inputs to economy. www.themj.co.uk/resilience-f...

NEW A developer is applying to have £50 million's worth of section 106 obligations dropped for a 5,750-home scheme, citing "significant changes" such as the pandemic. Full story 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1903...

🚨 New on Substack: Part One of my two-part post on the 'infamous' Hulme Crescents in Manchester; completed 1971, demolished 1994: municipaldreams.substack.com/p/the-hulme-...

NEW Planning minister Matthew Pennycook has said the government may consider creating a new planning use class for short-term lets, to help councils manage the number of STLs in their local area More ⤵️ www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1903...

🚨The latest government planning stats are out The number of planning applications submitted to and homes permitted by local authorities in the 12 months to September 2024 fell to their lowest levels in over a decade 📉 Great story by Natasha Norris www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1902...

A court has ordered two businessmen to pay £190,000 for turning a house in Manchester into a car workshop “illegally” My latest 👇 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1902...

NEW Eight councils are at risk of having their planning departments placed in 'special measures' for slow decision-making, government data reveals. More 🔽 www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1902...