🕒 Article read time: 2 minutes
Logistics UK’s Head of Cities and Infrastructure Policy, Jonathan Walker, responds to Chancellor’s planning reforms
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves announced, on 8 July, that the government would reform planning to facilitate the delivery of infrastructure and housing, including speeding up decision-making on transport and energy projects.
She added that the government would set out new policy intentions for critical infrastructure in the coming months. Rachel Reeves also announced that the government would:
• Update relevant National Policy Statements within the next 12 months and legislate to ensure these statements are updated at least every five years.
• Launch a consultation on changes – focused on growth – to the National Planning Policy Framework before the end of July.
• Consider wider economic growth when making decisions on called-in planning applications and would intervene in local planning decisions when such decisions are not considered to sufficiently support growth.
• See the Secretaries of State for Transport and Energy Security and Net Zero prioritise decisions on infrastructure projects “that have been sitting unresolved for far too long.”
• Seek to expand the use of spatial planning to other infrastructure sectors, as it is being used for energy infrastructure.
Read the Chancellor’s full speech here.
Logistics UK has been actively calling for planning reform to support the delivery of logistics facilities and infrastructure, to enable goods to be moved in the most productive, strategic and green way.
Logistics UK’s Head of Cities and Infrastructure Policy, Jonathan Walker said: “The planning system is in desperate need of reform and so we welcome the government committing to improving decision making.
“The system must not consider freight and logistics solely as an independent sector but should instead ensure that it is placed at the heart of considerations around all land use and infrastructure development.
“As well as reforming the system, government at all levels must engage with the logistics industry, to both ensure the sector has space to grow and that other developments are conducive to freight efficiency.”
According to a 2022 Savills report, restrictive planning processes mean that the annual growth in land use by the industrial and logistics sector is 29% lower than it would otherwise be, inhibiting UK productivity and resilience.
Published On: 18/07/2024 16:30:00
Comments Section
If you are a Logistics UK member login to add comments.
News In Brief
CFL signs deal with Thai Airways aimed at giving UK businesses increased courier access to Far East
CFL, the express courier handler based at Heathrow, has today announced a three-year deal with Thai Airways that opens up the Far East market for UK businesses.
Thailand has a population of circa 66 million and is the second largest economy in Southeast Asia after China.
Few of the APAC region’s airlines offer a courier product, so Thai’s additional capacity will create significant potential for regional businesses in Asia looking to trade with the UK.
Matthew Ware, CEO at CFL said; “We are delighted to formalise this important partnership with Thai Airways.
“Exporting is vital for the UK economy, and this deal will give UK businesses greater capacity and faster access to an already huge and growing market.”
A survey of 500 British SMEs by the Social Market Foundation found that there are around 70,000 UK businesses that could be selling online but don’t. The research also suggested that if these companies did sell online, it could boost the UK economy by £9.3bn.
Latest articles
Logistics UK and Clean Cities call for more electric van support in order to create zero emission city centre freight zones
Oliver Lord, UK head of campaign group Clean Cities has urged the government to ramp up support for businesses in order for them to transfer their fleets over to electric vans, with the aim of city centres becoming zero emission freight zones in the near future.
Read time: 2 minutes
View article
Logistics UK responds to call on HS2 to take immediate action
Expanding rail capacity and improving connectivity should be priorities for the new Government, which should consider reviving cancelled sections of HS2, Campaign for Better Transport has said this week on 16 July. The charity is calling on the government to immediately halt the sell-off of HS2 land while the future of the project is reviewed.
Read time: 2 minutes
View article
Spotlight on Wales with Logistics UK's Policy Manager – Trade, Customs and Borders, Josh Fenton
As a Policy Manager, I’m involved in our trade, customs and border policy work, working on issues related to the internal UK market, the relationship between the UK and the European Union (EU), as well as trade across the short straits in the channel in Kent.
Read time: 2 minutes
View article
