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Built environment leaders have warmly welcomed new legislation aiming to speed up planning decisions but called for more funding for councils.

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which will be introduced to Parliament this afternoon, will curtail the role of council planning committees and allow more schemes to be decided by planning officers.

The legislation will also set out controls over the size of planning committees, mandate training for committee members and empower councils to set their own planning fees to invest in the 鈥渙ver-stretched鈥� system.

Justin Young, chief executive of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), said the reforms will be 鈥渃rucial to tackle the bureaucracy that is standing in the way of new homes, buildings, and critical infrastructure鈥�.

鈥淚nvesting in our built and natural environment now, will help us realise the homes and places that we need for the future,鈥� he added.

RICS senior land and resource specialist Tony Mulhall said proposals to retain judicial reviews while limiting the scope for 鈥渧exatious鈥� delays was a 鈥減roportionate response鈥�.

鈥淭his together with an overall reduction in bureaucracy will prove crucial for getting more building projects off the ground,鈥� he said.

A spokesperson for Sadiq Khan said the Mayor of London 鈥渟hares the Government鈥檚 ambitions for growth and determination to turbocharge the delivery of desperately needed affordable housing and sustainable infrastructure in London and across the UK.

鈥淔or 14 years, London was held back by the previous government, which didn鈥檛 recognise that enabling more growth in London is vital for the nation鈥檚 prosperity. The mayor is now keen to work with ministers to ensure this Bill allows him to deliver the infrastructure and affordable homes the capital badly needs.鈥�

RIBA president, Muyiwa Oki described the bill as a 鈥渨elcome shot in the arm for the construction industry鈥� but warned council planning authorities would need enough funding for the reforms to succeed.

鈥淭o ensure the much needed high quality housing and infrastructure, urgent action is required. However, to deliver the seismic changes proposed, local planning departments will need to be adequately resourced and supported with the right people, skills and design expertise they need,鈥� he said.

Chartered Institute of Housing interim director of policy, communications and external affairs Rachel Williamson also welcomed the reforms but said the sector 鈥渕ust be properly resourced and supported鈥�.

鈥淲e look forward to further announcements in the upcoming Spending Review and a long-term housing strategy that provides the certainty and investment needed to turn these commitments into reality,鈥� she said.

And while the County Councils Network (CCN) praised the 鈥渓ong overdue鈥� reintroduction of strategic planning to boost housebuilding but warned the changes would require 鈥渁 lot more鈥� local authority resourcing.

鈥淚t is imperative that county and unitary councils have the funding to assemble strategic planning teams and deliver evidence bases to make these new plans as effective as they could be,鈥� said CCN housing and planning spokesperson Richard Clewer.

鈥淭his should be considered in the upcoming Spending Review, where the funding a local authority receives could dictate how comprehensive its strategic plan is. Alongside funding, the government must also ensure councils have the workforce capacity needed. 

鈥淭his is especially pertinent for large rural areas where recruitment and retention of planners is more of a challenge.鈥�

Clewer also criticised the government鈥檚 plans to reduce the role of council planning committees in making decisions on schemes.

鈥淲e are concerned about efforts to dilute and bypass the role of councillors on planning committees, particularly in rural areas where significant developments could only constitute a few dozen homes,鈥� he said.

鈥淏y only allowing councillors to debate and discuss only the proposals that the government defines as a large development, this will erode local people鈥檚 voice within the planning system.  

鈥淚t will also take away the discretion that can be used by planning committees to resolve small applications that come down to very nuanced decisions.鈥�

However, Matthew Evans, counsel at law firm Forsters, described the move as 鈥渃reative thinking鈥� and said more delegated decisions made by planning officers 鈥渋s a move in the right direction鈥�.

Evans said the reforms, which also include cutting the role of statutory consultees, 鈥渟hould reduce uncertainty in the system and enable schemes to progress to delivery more quickly鈥�, adding that 鈥渋nsular boundary led thinking鈥� had restricted the delivery of vital infrastructure.

And Pete Gladwell, group managing director of public investment at Legal & General also praised the Bill, calling it a 鈥渟ignificant and positive step鈥� in tackling delays in the planning system.

鈥淭o drive national economic growth, boost productivity, achieve positive environmental impact, and deliver genuinely affordable housing, the barriers hindering the delivery of homes and clean energy infrastructure in Britain must be removed,鈥� he said.