Government publishes promised updates to the planning system

The consultation will run for 8 weeks, ending 11:45pm on 24 September 2024.

The NFU will be gathering feedback from members to provide their views on the proposed changes, which will be released in due course.

The new government has already made minor changes to the NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework) with the ending of the de facto ban for on-shore wind. The current consultation represents a major overhaul of the planning system with the aim of delivering more housing, infrastructure, and economically important projects.

Food production

Policies surrounding food production are scarce in the NPPF.

The current single entry is footnote 64 which adds some weight to food production and tries to avoid the use of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes. The current proposal removes any weight given to food production.

The NFU has previously fought for the inclusion of food production into the NPPF, and sees the proposal in its current form as unproductive and a step backwards.

Changes to housebuilding

Proposals heavily strengthen policy that support the provision of house building. Policy will make it easier for developers to get their projects over the line, whereas local authorities will be required to adhere to stricter and mandatory rules for meeting their housing targets.

Farmers will likely see a larger increase in housebuilding which may impact their businesses if located nearby. Furthermore, farmers may also see their land gain greater interest from parties interested in purchasing land for development.

Changes to green belt

The green belt is once again under the spotlight, being some of the most desirable places for development in the country.

‘Grey belt’ has received a definition that can be read in the NPPF glossary. It should be noted that previously developed land does not constitute agricultural land or buildings.

The government is now requiring a greater amount of reviews of the green belt from local authorities, which will lead to more green belt being released for development.

Changes to infrastructure

As with housebuilding, there is a large drive to deliver new infrastructure. The new NPPF creates and strengthens policy to deliver infrastructure faster.

Local authorities will be required to select and mark land suitable for infrastructure development, similar to how housing and employment land is currently allocated.

The policy goes in tandem with changes to the amount of infrastructure that will be decided at governmental level (nationally significant infrastructure projects) opposed to the local authority level, with thresholds to decide on the decision maker for onshore wind and solar rising, which will leave more projects to be decided at local authority level.

Further support

To see the full list of proposed changes, visit: GOV.UK | Proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system.

If you have any questions about the new National Planning Policy Framework, please contact your local NFU representative or our CallFirst service on 0370 845 8458.