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Developers must help councils fix planning, says Salway

British Property Federation (BPF) president, Francis Salway, today called on the property industry to help get the planning system working by assisting in funding councils and by ensuring it puts forward quality applications.

Salway, chief executive of Land Securities, Britain’s biggest property company, told the London Stand at MIPIM that developers have a great desire to improve the planning system and that the government should encourage local authorities to let developers contribute resources to help them deal with clearing the backlog of applications.

Councils are already allowed to do this but unnecessary fears over issues of probity are restricting its use.

Councillors should receive formal planning training to help them take more informed decisions, he added. Currently, there is no mandatory training and the industry believes councillors could benefit from a better understanding of how the property market works.

In a statement last week, responding to the recent Killian Pretty planning review, Communities and Local Government admitted that there “has never been a more pressing need than now [to sort out the planning system], with the current challenging economic climate.”

Francis Salway, president of the BPF and chief executive of Land Securities, said:

“Confidence is key and having a clear idea about the timescale of getting planning consents helps manage our risk in terms of getting the timing of delivery right. It’s hard enough to read the cycle anyway, but in a cyclical market, uncertainty over timescales for planning makes the whole development process more risky - and unnecessarily so.

“While development has dried up at the current time, many will be planning for the future and it’s vital the industry can begin to get back on its feet without any additional delay. While the overall simplification of the planning system is a long sought-after goal, there are many things we can get right now while we wait for the government to take on board recommendations from the Killian Pretty review.

“Of course, in the current climate it is also about getting the financing right and that is why the BPF is looking at new models, such as tax increment financing, which is gathering a wide range of support from both council leaders and the industry. We also need to ensure that local authorities receive a good degree of financial benefit from any development, which will continue to incentivise them in working with us.

“There are simple improvements that can be introduced immediately following the Killian Pretty review.”

The BPF’s Planning Manifesto's recommendations are:

1. Improve recruitment and retention of planners

2. Let planners get on with planning, removing minor applications

3. Encourage Councils to outsource mainstream planning functions

4. Encourage councils to accept property industry funding for planning resources

5. Make councillor training mandatory

6. Pool resources across local authorities

7. Incentivise local authorities to promote development

8. Use tax increment financing to fund infrastructure

9. Reduce information required to support planning applications

10. Speed up the contribution from statutory consultees

11. Improve and incentivise pre-application discussions

12. Require planning appeals to concentrate on the reasons for refusal

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BPF Planning Manifesto