Planning white paper: key recommendations

PlanningResource, 21 May 2007

For major infrastructure such as airports, seaports, power plants and waste works, the paper proposes:

• An independent planning commission to take decisions on nationally significant cases.
• The commission would have powers to annul or amend public and local legislation governing infrastructure.
• It could grant authorisations including deemed planning permission, compulsory purchases, listed building consent and conservation area consent.
• New national policy statements on key sectors such as energy and transport should be created to guide the commission.
• Infrastructure developers should consult publicly on their proposals.

For the town and country planning system, the white paper proposes:

• Replacing the current needs test for out-of-town developments with another as yet unnamed test, with "a strong focus on our town centre first policy".
• Excusing projects of over 200 homes from the national 13-week target for deciding major applications, provided local authorities and developers agree their own timetables for decision making.
• Requiring local authorities to weigh up economic benefits when determining planning applications
• A new planning policy statement, Planning for Economic Development, giving local authorities greater autonomy.
• Permitting most household microgeneration without the need for planning permission.
• Allowing businesses and householders to carry out extensions without planning permission if the proposals would have low impact on the adjacent area.
• Allowing minor variations to be made to planning permissions without the need for a new application.
• Reducing consultation periods.

The planning white paper is available by clicking here.