Research undertaken by the Local Government Association (LGA) has discovered that over one million homes, which have all been granted planning permission, are not being built. The analysis found that since 2009/2010, 2,564,600 homes have been given planning permission, and only 1,530,680 were actually built.
Although there can often be a delay between granting planning permission and actually completing a house, the latest figures suggest there is a slow down in completions.
In recent years, politicians have been trying to address planning legislation to make it easier to build homes. This is in response to a reported housing shortage across England. However, the statistics show that planning is not a barrier to building homes.
A planning white paper is expected to be introduced in the spring and the LGA is urging the Government to use the paper to grant powers to take action on land that has planning permission but the development is not being done. In particular, it suggests that councils should be able to compulsory purchase land if homes have not been built. The councils should also be allowed to charge developers a tax for every un-built property once planning permission expires.
Given that there is a shortage of housing, the key is trying to find a way to encourage builders to complete the developments they have sought permission for. Given that planning applications for larger housing developments can cost a developer quite a lot of money, it is surprising that more developments aren't complete.
Housing spokesman for the LGA David Renard said, "The planning system is not a barrier to house building. The number of homes granted planning permission has far outpaced the number of homes being built. No-one can live in a planning permission, or a half-built house where work on a site has begun but not been completed.
"Councils need powers to tackle our housing backlog and step in where a site with planning permission lies dormant and house building has stalled. If we are to solve our housing shortage, councils need to be able to get building again and resume their role as major builders of affordable homes.
"It is also vital that the planning process is protected, so that councils and communities can ensure we realise the Government's ambition of building beautiful homes, which includes the necessary infrastructure and affordable housing."
In recent years, the Government has been relaxing planning legislation in order to increase the number of homes that can be built, which could potentially raise questions about whether the homes would be suitable, especially if professional planners are losing powers to advise on appropriate development. However, the figures released by the LGA suggest that there is little to worry about on the planning side. The issue remains with the completion of buildings, which lies outside of the control of the planning system.
