Scottish government delivery plan to strengthen planning system
The Scottish government has launched a delivery plan for strengthening the planning system to tackle the housing emergency.
The plan acknowledges that “in Scotland, planning permission has been granted for many more homes than are currently being built”, with around 29,000 planning approvals, compared to 20,000 starts. It is estimates that planning permission exists for 164,000 homes which have yet to be delivered, including 114,000 in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Despite the system’s apparent efficacy, this delivery plan seeks to further improve the capacity and efficiency of the planning system, with the aim of unlocking investment, tackling delays and better understanding blockers elsewhere in the system. The plan focuses on four priority objectives to be progressed “at pace” over the next six months, building on Scotland’s National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), and its presumption in favour of sustainable development.
- Policy: a strong and consistent planning and policy framework for investment.
Actions under this theme focus on ensuring policies are applied consistently and exploring where further policy change is needed (for example with guidance on flooding or community engagement). -
Delivery: actively enabling and facilitating development.
Actions under this theme focus on areas where direct intervention could drive development, including establishing a Housing Planning Hub to provide brokerage support for major housing developments which have stalled in the system, and supporting planning authorities to develop pipelines of land for development -
Efficiency: an end-to-end approach to improving the efficiency of the system.
Actions under this theme seek to streamline planning processes, for example through standardising planning conditions and section 75 agreements and exploring expansions in permitted development rights. It also includes halting the introduction of an infrastructure levy, based on feedback that this could add significant complexity to the system whilst offering limited benefits in return. -
Capacity: investing in capacity with access to excellent professional skills and expertise.
Actions under this theme include more support for planning careers and expanded departmental funding through higher planning fees.
While these actions have potential to strengthen Scottland’s planning system, it is disappointing that no consideration appears to have been given as to how the planning system can better encourage built out after permission is granted (for example through “use it or loose it” permissions, or fees to maintain permissions prior to work starting).
Additionally, the focus on the planning system appears to ignore where the majority of the issues in Scottland’s housing delivery pipeline are – namely, between planning permission and completion. It is to be hoped that this is only the first phase of the Scottish Government’s work to address the housing crisis, with additional work plans to follow.
Should you have any questions on this delivery plan, or if you would like to discuss housing delivery in Scotland more broadly, please email [email protected].