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Planning After the Localism Act

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Structure of the Presentation

• General Background

• The Localism Act – key sections for planning

• Implications for the County Council

• Other planning matters

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Background

• Royal Assent – 15 November

• Many provisions already law

• Others will require further Orders

• Lots more than planning - e.g. freedoms and flexibility for local government, major changes to public housing and tenancy law

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Background The Context• Promotion of growth and

jobs• Reduce the burdens of

planning• End the imposition of top

down targets• Encourage bottom up

planning and local support for growth

• Reward growth rather than compensate for economic failure

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Background• The Government's top priority in reforming the planning

system is to promote sustainable economic growth and jobs. Government's clear expectation is that the answer to development and growth should wherever possible be 'yes', except where this would compromise the key sustainable development principles set out in national planning policy.

• Greg Clark MP – Ministerial Statement 23 March 2011

• "Localism and growth will go hand in hand. By giving local people a greater say together with new incentives to share in the benefits of growth, our reforms will help to create the conditions where communities begin to welcome development rather than resist it at all costs.“

• Greg Clark MP, 1 April 2011

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Key Sections for Planning

• Abolition of Regional Plans• Duty to Cooperate• Neighbourhood Plans• Changes to Local

Development Plans and Examinations

• CIL Amendments• Changes for infrastructure

Planning• Predetermination and local

financial considerations

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Key Sections – Regional Plans Abolition

• Signalled early on by Government

• The “Cala Homes saga”

• Gov’t consultation on environmental impact of revocation just finished

• Will require an additional Order to fully revoke

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Key Sections – Regional Plans Abolition

• New Hierarchy of planning guidance.

• Slimmed down NPPF

• The local development plan – including approved Neighbourhood plans

• The end of regional planning – and sub regional planning – unless local planning authorities choose to do it.

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Key Sections – Duty to Cooperate• Applies to all Local Planning Authorities (LPA’s), National Park

Authorities and County Councils, and a number of other public bodies such as Environment Agency and Highways Agency.

• Relates to sustainable development or use of land that would have a significant impact on at least two LPA’s or on a planning matter that falls within the remit of a County Council.

• Requires that Councils set out planning policies to address such issues, and to consider joint approaches to plan making.

• Requires that Councils and public bodies “ engage constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis” to develop strategic policies.

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Key Sections – Duty to Cooperate

• Guidance still to be produced

• Will not be sufficient to merely consult.

• Suggestion of protocols and agreements

• e.g. Waste in Herts – currently exported to 67 different locations

• 6 Authorities group e.g.

Duty to cooperate puts council under scrutiny

By Jamie Carpenter Friday, 27 January 2012

A planning inspector is to hold a special hearing

to determine whether a Somerset district council

fulfilled a new obligation to cooperate with

neighbouring authorities when preparing its

local plan after legal action was threatened by a developer.

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Key Sections – Neighbourhood Planning

• Must conform to Local Plan• Prepared by Town and Parish

Councils and other neighbourhood groups

• District Council has a duty to support

• Subject to local referendum – 50% support

• If so Local Planning Authority is compelled to adopt as planning policy

• Also Neighbourhood Development Orders and Community right to build Orders

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Key Sections – Neighbourhood Planning

• Early days in Hertfordshire

• One frontrunner – Grovehill in Hemel Hempstead

• Issues of cost, credibility, expertise

• Implications for strategic authorities

• CPRE seminar series

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Key Sections – Local Development Plans

• Some burdens eased – e.g. Annual Monitoring Reports,

• Changes to Examinations and Inspectors roles – reports no longer binding

• Push to simpler plans • But without PPGs: RSS ; other strategic

planning documents………• But Minerals and Waste PPGs continue??

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Key Sections - CIL

• A reality – April 2014 watershed

• CIL Reference Group reporting to HIPP

• Act introduces concept of contribution to Neighbourhoods

• Consultation just taken place on how much and CIL and Affordable housing

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Key Sections – Infrastructure Planning

• Abolition of the Infrastructure Planning Commission

• Creation of the National Infrastructure Unit within the Planning Inspectorate

• SoS now makes final decision

• New system will be used for Fieldes Lock proposal.

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Key Sections - Predetermination“A decision-maker is not to be

taken to have had, or to have appeared to have had, a closed mind when making the decision just because—

(a) the decision-maker had previously done anything that directly or indirectly indicated what view the decision-maker took, or would or might take, in relation to a matter, and

(b) the matter was relevant to the decision.”

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Key Sections - Local Financial Considerations• Controversial proposal to introduce “local financial

considerations” as a material consideration.• Definition – “grant or other financial assistance “ from

Government – or a developer contribution through CIL• Now presented as just one material consideration • Duty to consult before submission of applications

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Summary of Implications

• HCC still the plan maker for Minerals and Waste• Still have the same development control role for

Minerals, Waste and County function applications• Statutory consultee for major infrastructure schemes• Consultee on Neighbourhood Plans – if relevant• No longer a strategic planning Authority• But we will have a Duty to Cooperate• Other strategic roles – information and monitoring;

Building Futures; infrastructure…..

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Other Planning Matters

• NPPF

• Regulations

• CIL and Infrastructure Planning

• Role of the LEP

• Flood and Water Management – Lead Local Authority

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Planning After the Localism Act