The government’s ‘Brownfield Passport’ should help boost the speed at which proposals for new housing are approved.
On 30 July 2024, the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG) consulted on reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and then published a variety of papers exploring different areas of planning reforms.
The purpose of the papers is to allow the industry to feedback to MHCLG as it considers steps to enact when reforming the current planning system.
The first paper explores how to establish clear parameters for development proposals on brownfield land, which can help to cut costs, time and boost certainty of planning proposals being approved.
BROWNFIELD PASSPORT
This would form a ‘Brownfield Passport’ which local councils would use to accept proposals faster – but only if the proposals meet the criteria explained in the passport.
The paper is searching for remarks on what the criteria within the passport should look like.
Many agents are often worried about the supply of new homes, which affects the cost of homes to buy and rent.
ONGOING ISSUE
Henry Griffith, Policy and Campaigns Officer at Propertymark, says: “Propertymark supports the concept of a ‘Brownfield Passport’, especially if it helps speed up planning proposals and can ensure any new homes built reflect the needs of the local community.
“The housing crisis is an ongoing issue and planning proposals can get bogged down by local opposition to new homes, so this measure would go some way to ensure that local wishes are reflected in planning proposals, which will guarantee that any new homes built can be quickly occupied.
“When producing the Brownfield Passports, it is vitally important that local planning authorities spend sufficient time and resources to create specific parameters that would satisfy this need for local housing and larger infrastructure.”
