Watch out NIMBYs: Kwarteng pledges to get Britain building again
The Government has announced its intention to radically overhaul the planning system to ramp up major infrastructure projects across the country and reignite growth and productivity in the UK’s flagging economy.
Kwasi Kwarteng announced in his mini budget to the House of Commons today that he will bring forward a new bill to unpick the “complex” patchwork of planning restrictions and EU-derived laws “that constrain our growth.”
He said: “Mr Speaker, we are getting out of the way to get Britain building.”
The Chancellor argued roads and railways were essential to generating growth – carrying people, goods and information across the country.
However, he believed that the current planning system for major infrastructure was “too slow and fragmented.”
Kwarteng revealed the Government would streamline assessments, appraisals, consultations, duplications, and regulations for new projects.
It would also review the government’s business case process to speed up decision making.
He said: “The time it takes to get consent for nationally significant projects is getting slower, not quicker, while our international competitors forge ahead. We have to end this.”
The Government is now set to publish a list of infrastructure projects that will be prioritised for acceleration, in sectors such as transport, energy, and telecoms.
Meanwhile, to increase housing supply and enable forthcoming planning reforms, the Government will also increase the disposal of surplus government land to build new homes.