The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government introduced the Planning and Infrastructure Bill (“the Bill”) to the House of Commons on 11 March 2025.
Following the publication of a revised National Planning Policy Framework in December 2024, the Bill marks the next major step in the Government’s mission to build 1.5 million homes in England and fast-track 150 planning decisions on major economic infrastructure projects.
The Bill’s overarching aim is to speed up the consenting process for building critical infrastructure, including new homes, electricity infrastructure, and transport infrastructure.
Additionally, the Bill seeks to promote improvement in nature recovery, decision-making, and planning across local authority boundaries, as well as support delivery of the Clean Power 2030 target by fast-tracking key clean energy projects.
The Bill’s proposals are structured into five key areas:
- Infrastructure
- Planning
- Development and nature recovery
- Development corporations
- Compulsory purchase.
Infrastructure
This section of the Bill details infrastructure reforms – the most significant of which concerns Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs).
To this end, the Bill makes the following proposals:
- National Policy Statements (NPSs) to be updated at least every five years.
- New power for the Secretary of State to redirect certain projects to an alternative consenting route, where appropriate.
- Changes to the pre-application and acceptance stages for Development Consent Order (DCO) applications.
- Reforms to legal challenges.
- New statutory duties for local authorities to “have regard” to guidance published by the Secretary of State when engaging in the NSIP regime, including when preparing local impact reports and making oral or written representations at DCO Examinations.
This section of the Bill also covers details of improving electricity infrastructure, including reforming connections to the electricity network, long duration electricity storage, and electricity generation on forestry land.
Additionally, amendments to the Highways Act 1980 and the Transport and Works Act 1992 aim to improve the development of transport infrastructure.
Planning
The Bill aims to improve decision making by Local Planning Authorities (LPAs).
Measures to achieve this include:
- Reforms to the process for setting planning fees, including the power for the Secretary of State to sub-delegate the setting of fees or charges to LPAs.
- Mandatory training for LPAs.
- National scheme of delegation for planning functions.
Another key area of focus is strategic planning and spatial development strategies. With the exception of London, most of England is not currently covered by a strategic plan, meaning the current development plans system depends on individual authorities cooperating with one another on their local plans to address cross-boundary issues.
The strategic planning tool proposed in the Bill is the spatial development strategy (SDS), closely modelled on the London system.
Local authorities would need to prepare a SDS for their area.
The Bill would also enable the Government to establish “strategic planning boards” to prepare SDSs on behalf of specified groupings of these authorities.
Development and nature recovery
With the environment an ever-pressing concern, all infrastructure development must take ecological concerns into account.
The Bill proposes a new strategic approach to nature recovery in relation to development.
The Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) provides an alternative approach for developers to meet certain environmental obligations relating to protected sites and species.
The NRF would allow Natural England to bring forward Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) that will set out the strategic action to be taken to address the impact that development has on a protected site or species and, crucially, how these actions go further than the current approach and support nature recovery.
Where an EDP is in place and a developer utilises it, the developer would no longer be required to undertake their own assessments, or deliver project-specific interventions, for issues addressed by the EDP.
EDPs will be subject to public consultation and Secretary of State approval, with periodic monitoring and reporting requirements.
Development corporations
Development Corporations are statutory bodies established for the purpose of urban development and regeneration.
This Government will legislate to strengthen development corporations to make it easier to deliver large-scale new communities.
The Bill proposes a clearer, more flexible framework for the operation of development corporations to enable the building of new houses and communities across the country.
Compulsory purchase
The Bill aims to improve the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) process and land compensation rules to enable more effective land assembly through public sector-led schemes.
This includes:
- Allowing statutory notices to be delivered electronically.
- Simplifying information required to be included in newspaper notices.
- Delegation more decisions to inspectors.
A more streamlined and efficient process will also enable authorities to make greater use of their compulsory purchase powers, with associated cost savings realised through faster acquisition decisions.
The Bill also proposes making amendments relating to section 14A of the Land Compensation Act 1961 and changes to the loss payments regime.
Support from Palmers Solicitors
Understanding new legislation and how it could affect your development projects can be tricky.
Palmers Solicitors’ expert construction and engineering lawyers are well placed to assist you in understanding and responding to the latest planning reforms.
We can advise employers, contractors, sub-contractors and developers on the relevant legal issues throughout the lifecycle of a construction project.
We can assist with both disputes and contracts & agreements, as well as help with the recovery of any debts owed.
For more information about what the Planning and Infrastructure Bill means for you, contact our construction and engineering team today.