A group of experts have claimed that a national planning framework is needed for England, in a bid to balance growth and shape the post-Brexit economy.
The framework would set priorities for development, while making sure regions are empowered and supported in order to fulfil their potential. Such a move would fill a gap in England, after devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own frameworks.
The call comes from the Common Futures Network, a forum of economists, planners, housing experts, engineers and development interests. It said last year’s Brexit vote highlighted a "greater need than ever" for a co-ordinated national economic strategy, with England "starkly divided" by geography and social class.
The new framework would potentially tie together the Government’s industrial strategy with policies on infrastructure, the environment, housing and devolution. In addition, it could tackle job creation across "marginalised" regions such as the Midlands and the North, which voted for Brexit, while areas such as Cornwall, Cumbria, and Tees Valley are set to lose EU regional development funding. Rural areas face similar challenges with the withdrawal of the Common Agricultural Policy.
Jim Steer, a member of the Network and founder of transport consultancy Steer Davies Gleave commented: "Come Brexit, planning - so long out of fashion - needs to come back in a contemporary form. The Government’s industrial strategy is expected to be ‘place-based’. It needs to be if economic development is to extend beyond the favoured metropolitan centres."
The Network's recommendations also include:
