New homes proposed near train stations will be automatically granted planning permission even on green belt land if they meet certain criteria, as part of Government plans to speed up housebuilding.
Ministers hope the new plans will lead to thousands more homes being built closer to major transport hubs to attract commuters and help the Government hit its 1.5m homes target by 2029.
But the proposals are likely to anger campaigners who want to protect the green belt from overdevelopment.
It comes as councils will also be required to inform the Government if they intend to block any new developments over 150 homes, handing the Housing Secretary the power to have the final say on whether they should be built.
The measures will be included in a new “pro-growth” national planning policy framework, which will be consulted on later this year.
Under the proposals, the Government said it wants to recognise the “significant benefits” for jobs and economic growth that can be achieved by building around train and tram stations, with the new rules extending to land “within the green belt”.
According to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), the changes to the green belt form part of the Government’s “continuing efforts to ensure that a designation designed in the middle of the last century is updated to work today”.
The reforms will apply across all local authorities in England and Wales and will include minimum housing density requirements.
Announcing the changes, Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the move was about building “the right homes in the right places and nearby transport links are a vital part of that”.
“We’re making it easier to build well-connected and high-quality homes, using stronger powers to speed things up if councils drag their feet, and proposing to streamline the consultation process to cut back delays,” he said.
And he added: “This is about action: spades in the ground, breathing new life into communities and families finally getting the homes they need.”
Powers to over rule councils
Additional powers to allow the Housing Secretary to overrule councils from rejecting housing schemes above 150 units will also speed up the delivery of new homes, officials believe. And particular attention will be paid to any application where the council planning committee votes to refuse it, against the advice of their own planning officers.
The plans illustrate the urgency within the MHCLG to get the country building as it races to meet its ambitious 1.5m target by the end of the Parliament.
While developers have welcomed the changes, the reforms have come under fire from the Local Government Association, which warned they would erode local democratic accountability.
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Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the reforms would end “years of dither and delay by green lighting affordable new homes for working people”.
Catherine Williams, Planning Director at the Home Builders Federation added: “Making more land available for development and increasing the certainty of achieving planning permission and doing so more quickly are essential steps if we are to increase housing supply.
“Sustainable development is at the core of the planning system and it is positive that the Government is being proactive in permitting developments near train stations.”
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