Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has announced that planning permission deadlines will be extended as the Government puts in place measures to support the construction industry and "boost building".
Planning permission expires after three years if work has not started on-site, but under this interim measure sites with permission that have an expiry date between the start of lockdown, and the end of this year, will now have that consent extended to 1 April 2021.
According to Government estimates, this should prevent more than 400 residential permissions, or 24,000 new homes, from expiring. This measure is designed to help these and more developments get back on track as the economy recovers.
The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) has repeatedly called for the expiry date of planning permissions during lockdown to be addressed. Victoria Hills, chief executive of the RTPI, said: "Planners have been at the forefront of flexible approaches and innovative thinking in responding quickly to the pandemic and now how we need to shape a fairer and more sustainable recovery".
Hills stated that the new measures should mean that developers can get on and start on the housing developments needed, without having to apply for extensions.
Jenrick also announced that the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) would be able to use more than one procedure, such as written representations, hearings and inquiries, at the same time when dealing with a planning appeal on a permanent basis. This was tested as part of a pilot programme last year following the Rosewell Review.
Jenrick said: "Building the homes the country needs is central to the mission of this Government and is an important part of our plans to recover from the impact of the coronavirus".
"New laws will enable us to speed up the pace of planning appeals and save hundreds of construction sites from being cancelled before they have a chance to get spades in the ground, helping to protect hundreds of thousands of jobs and create many others".
"Taken together, these measures will help to keep workers safe and our economy moving as we work together to bounce back from the pandemic".
The housing secretary also set out measures to help developers agree on more flexible construction site working hours with councils.
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