Weekly planning news

House of Lords Continues Scrutiny of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill

The House of Lords continued its detailed examination of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill on 20 October 2025, debating a range of proposed amendments to the legislation, which aims to streamline planning and accelerate delivery of housing and critical infrastructure.

The Bill seeks to reform many elements of the planning process, including the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) process, improve electricity grid connections, grant new powers for infrastructure delivery corporations, and establish a Nature Restoration Fund to support environmental recovery.

During the recent debate, peers discussed amendments covering environmental impacts, pre-application consultation requirements, and oversight protections, as well as issues related to small-scale energy projects, long-duration energy storage, and the impact of wind farms on defence systems.

According to Planning Resource¹, one notable outcome was the government’s decision to withdraw its proposed “major infrastructure application test” at the Development Consent Order (DCO) stage. Ministers acknowledged that the test’s wording was “unclear and subjective,” prompting concerns over its practicality and interpretation.

Peers voted to approve a number of amendments, including:

• New duties for government to respond to parliamentary resolutions and select committee recommendations
• Revised consent regimes for heritage sites affected by the construction of new reservoirs
• Provisions addressing water projects that could require the demolition of villages

However, the Lords rejected amendments related to pre-application consultations and large-scale solar projects.

Further debates took place on 22 October, focusing on issues including:

• Compulsory acquisition of highway land
• Disapplication of heritage protections
• Provision of public charging infrastructure
• Training requirements for planning committee members

The Bill remains under close scrutiny as it progresses through Parliament, with peers and stakeholders continuing to debate how best to balance development efficiency, environmental protection, and community engagement in the UK’s future planning framework.

AI regulation blueprint aims to reduce planning approval timeframe

A new blueprint for AI regulation has been announced, promising ‘to accelerate innovation and cut bureaucracy’. The AI Growth Lab was revealed by government at the Times Tech Summit, providing an opportunity for companies to test new AI innovations in a ‘sandbox environment’.

Sandboxes act as a controlled testing environment where, under strict supervision, specific regulations can be turned off to understand how AI technologies can be used in real-world scenarios. The AI blueprint will be introduced in key sectors such as professional services and healthcare.

The planning industry provides a key example of where AI can be used to streamline workflows, reducing processing and approval times. A typical housing development “racks up 4,000 pages of documentation and takes as long as 18 months from submission to approval.”

Reviewing regulations and exploring the role of AI in planning aims to reduce the impact of common issues which impact government’s aim of building 1.5 million homes in this parliamentary term.

The programme will be overseen by experts on both the technology and regulatory areas. A call for views on the proposals is now open until 2 January 2026, focusing on how and where the sandbox should be implemented.

Urgent action required to make new towns a success

John Walker, former chief executive of the Commission for New Towns, has warned that “urgent” action is needed to secure the long-term success of the government’s new towns programme.

Speaking at the Town and Country Planning Association’s annual Osborn Memorial Event, Walker welcomed the findings of the New Towns Taskforce - whose September report identified 12 potential locations for new towns - but cautioned that the initiative requires stronger delivery mechanisms and legislative clarity to survive future political shifts.

He called for new legislation to match the ambition and effectiveness of the 1946 New Towns Act, which empowered development corporations to acquire and control land comprehensively. Walker argued that government should reintroduce “fast and predictable approval processes,” enabling large-scale developments to be approved within months when consistent with masterplans.

He also stressed the importance of government-backed land acquisition to maintain momentum and prevent speculative control by private developers. Without these powers and protections, he warned, the programme risks stalling before its long-term objectives are realised.

1. https://www.planningresource.co.uk/article/1936798/lords-back-governments-removal-major-infrastructure-application-test-bill-ministers-accept-wording-unclear-subjective