Government pushes Planning Bill forward as critics question 'free for all'

MPs will vote on a controversial overhaul of England's planning system within the next year, the government has confirmed.

The Planning Bill - announced at the Queen's Speech - aims to stop local opponents blocking development in designated "growth zones".

Ministers said the plan would make it easier to hit house-building targets.

But critics said it would sideline locals - with one rural charity warning of a "free for all for development".

The government also confirmed it intended to make changes to the leasehold system - including new curbs on ground rents - in the coming year.

The measures would be part of a separate Leasehold Reform Bill, which was also outlined by the monarch during her speech to reopen Parliament on Tuesday.

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The proposed planning changes would see local officials stripped of their power to assess building applications case-by-case.

Under plans unveiled last summer, local councils in England would instead have to classify all land in their area as "protected", for "renewal", or for "growth".

In protected areas - such as areas of natural beauty, places at risk of flooding, and the green belt - development would generally remain restricted.

But councils would have to look favourably on development in "renewal" areas, whilst in "growth" zones, applications conforming to pre-agreed local plans would automatically gain initial approval.

Ministers are also consulting on a new algorithm to divide the England-wide 300,000 house building target into binding local quotas.

Plans to tweak a similar formula used to estimate local housing need were revised last year after a backlash from Tory MPs.

Improving housing supply and making it possible for more people to own a home is seen as a key aspect of the government's effort to reduce inequality and improve opportunity across the country.

There have been no firm decisions - but several Conservative MPs and councillors have serious concerns about plans to change the planning system.

They say the proposals could lead to substandard homes in the wrong places, with local views being overlooked or ignored.

A consultation on the government's proposals has closed, and I understand ministers are considering their response before publishing legislation later this year.

In the meantime, expect the pressure to build from the backbenches.

One senior Conservative said the debate will be "intense" - that's a polite way of saying this could well turn into an almighty row.

Former Prime Minister Theresa May argued the plans would "reduce local democracy" and lead to "the wrong homes being built in the wrong places".

Urging ministers to revise their proposals, the Tory MP said planning rules were not the main drag on house building, with many approved schemes yet to be built.

"This is less, I fear, about modernisation than about giving developers greater freedom," she added.

Countryside charity CPRE also called for a rethink on the Planning Bill, saying it would lead to "open season for developers on large parts of the countryside".

Its policy director, Tom Fyans, said it would prioritise house building firms over local residents, and "could slow the delivery of genuinely affordable homes in many areas".

He added: "All in all, it risks creating a free for all for development."

But the Country, Land and Business Association (CLA) said it welcomed the government's recognition that the planning system needed modernising.

Its president, Mark Bridgeman, said the countryside had been "treated like a museum" for too long, and "held back by an outdated system that has frustrated economic growth".

He added: "Rural poverty will only be eased and opportunity only created if we allow landowners to invest in their communities."