Responding to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Angela Rayner’s speech in the House of Commons this afternoon, John Dickie, Chief Executive at BusinessLDN, said:   

“The new Government must pull out all the stops to unblock the planning system if it is to enable the radical step-change needed to deliver 1.5 million new homes over this Parliament.”

“Labour is right to reintroduce mandatory housing targets and earmark poor quality sections of the green belt that are close to transport connections for development. These reforms should be matched with short-term pragmatic interventions to help get shovels in the ground quickly, including greater flexibility around the Section 106 process to boost the delivery of more affordable homes. Enabling cash-strapped local authorities to charge planning application fees that reflect their costs would also help them to deliver a more reliable and efficient service.  

“Londoners desperately need more homes so they can afford to live and work in the capital. We stand ready to work with the Government to help tackle the housing crisis and kickstart economic growth.”