Weekly planning news

Consultation on new town locations to launch soon

The government will consult on its preferred locations for a new generation of towns within weeks, planning minister Matthew Pennycook has confirmed, as ministers finalise evidence on where the settlements should be built and how they will be funded.

As reported by Planning Resource¹, Pennycook appeared before the housing, communities and local government select committee on 13 January - to say the Labour government was refining its shortlist of sites recommended by the New Towns Taskforce. He said the government would shortly launch a consultation on the locations it intends to pursue.

The taskforce recommended 12 potential locations for the project in a report published last year. Pennycook said the programme would be supported by existing government funding streams rather than a dedicated new pot. These include the £39bn social and affordable housing programme, £5bn for infrastructure and land from the National Housing Delivery Fund, and £16bn allocated to the National Housing Bank, part of Homes England.

MHCLG’s director for new towns, Cathy Francis, said these budgets would provide the initial funding to establish delivery vehicles such as development corporations.

Pennycook said detailed funding arrangements would be confirmed once the government has selected its preferred sites later in the spring. He also said ministers are still considering how homes built in new towns will be counted towards local housing need - a contentious issue that has already prompted backlash and unease across the sector.

Data centres become nationally significant infrastructure

Large data centre developments deemed to be of national significance can now be considered under the government’s major infrastructure planning regime.

The measures came into force on 8 January - introducing an amendment to the Infrastructure Planning (Business or Commercial Projects) Regulations 2013 to include data centres within the scope of the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) regime.

The change means developers of qualifying data centre schemes will be able to seek a direction from ministers under section 35 of the Planning Act 2008, allowing their proposals to be examined by planning inspectors and determined by the secretary of state rather than by local planning authorities.

While the regulations do not define what size of data centre would qualify, an accompanying explanatory memorandum makes clear that a project must be judged by the secretary of state to be “of national significance” before a section 35 direction can be granted.

Government unveil new Liverpool–Manchester rail line

The government has unveiled a major new phase of Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), centred on a brand-new railway line between Liverpool and Manchester - designed to transform travel, jobs and growth across the North of England.

At its heart is a new high-capacity route running from Liverpool to Manchester via Warrington and Manchester Airport, with three new stations planned at Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly and Warrington Bank Quay Low Level. The aim is to dramatically cut journey times, improve reliability and unlock space for more frequent services on one of the UK’s busiest rail corridors.

The Liverpool–Manchester link forms part of a wider £45bn Northern Powerhouse Rail programme, which will also upgrade routes between Leeds, Bradford, York, Sheffield and Manchester, creating a fast, high-frequency rail network across the North’s biggest city regions.

You can find out more about the forthcoming project on the government's website.²

1. https://www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1944973/mhclg-consult-preferred-new-town-locations-in-coming-weeks-says-pennycook
2. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/north-west-to-benefit-from-multi-billion-pound-rail-investment