Hansard

Planning is an essential building block for a successful and growing economy. What we build and where we build it creates the right conditions for economic growth and prosperity. When planning is responsive and has appropriate resources and expertise, it can unlock economic potential and leverage in investment—in particular, in housing. Planning is a powerful tool for delivering development, including new homes, in a way that supports our commitments to net zero and nature and builds stronger communities.

The delivery plan that I am publishing today sets out the actions that we will take so that planning can play its full part in addressing the housing emergency. We are accelerating those actions to ensure tangible results in the coming months. We have already reformed Scotland’s planning system to set out a strong vision with clear national planning policies for the future, through national planning framework 4.

One key objective of NPF4 is to support the delivery of quality homes for everybody who needs one. The policy is clear that applications will be supported if they are on sites that have been allocated in local development plans. Development proposals for new homes will be supported if they improve affordability and choice and address identified gaps in provision. Proposals for new homes will be supported where they make provision for affordable homes to meet an identified need. Our national planning policy on housing is permissive and not prescriptive, and that will not change.

However, our policy does not support development at any cost. Some members will be hearing calls for the so-called presumption in favour of sustainable development—a policy that pre-dated NPF4—to be reintroduced. However, that would not speed up delivery. Instead, it would take us back to more conflict and delay and do nothing to incentivise completions.

It is useful to remind anyone who is now calling for such a change from within this Parliament of the extensive engagement and parliamentary scrutiny that resulted in the Parliament adopting NPF4 in January 2023. At that time, members agreed that we needed to monitor the impact of NPF4 on housing delivery. In its annual review earlier this year, the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee also agreed that data on that is crucial. That evidence has informed the priorities that I am setting out today.

In recent weeks, I have been working intensively with my ministerial colleagues and stakeholders to identify how the planning system can help to address the housing emergency in Scotland. Those discussions have exposed that planning is not the only or even the most significant reason for the challenges that we are facing in housing. In a report that was published earlier this year, the Competition and Markets Authority identified that, over recent years, on average, 29,000 homes have been given planning permission annually in Scotland. That figure significantly exceeds local authorities’ land supply targets and it is higher than the target of 25,000 homes that industry representatives have been calling for.

We estimate that, across Scotland, more than 164,000 homes have planning permission but have not yet been built. Looking into it further, we see that analysis of house building applications shows that, in the Glasgow and Edinburgh city regions alone, planning permission has been granted for 121,000 homes that have not yet been built. Of those, around 38,000 units have been started but are not complete. The remainder may or may not be programmed by developers for build out. Land has also been allocated in development plans for a further 60,000 homes that are yet to receive planning permission.

The evidence shows that there is, in fact, no shortage of land, including land with planning permission already in place. What we need now is action to turn those permissions into homes. In the coming year, making progress on stalled applications will be our absolute priority.

There is more that we can and must do in planning to unlock more homes. Today, I am announcing clear actions that this Government will take to ensure that planning is front and centre in our efforts to turn this critical situation around. Those actions are around policy, delivery, efficiency and capacity.

First, on policy, we will continue to work with planning authorities to support them to put the new national policies into practice so that many more homes will be given planning permission every year where they are supported by agreed plans. Guidance will support that. We will also actively progress work to bring homes that have been given planning permission forward. Our work to reform compulsory purchase will contribute to that, and we will identify other mechanisms that could stimulate delivery.

Secondly, delivery is critical, too. We need to be crystal clear about the specific issues that are stalling development. My officials are now working with house builders and planning authorities to examine information that is being gathered on stalled sites. That will identify where well-placed interventions can broker solutions, as well as broader challenges. That group will meet for a detailed discussion later this week to look at the evidence and agree actions. While we will continue to respect the lead role that planning authorities play in determining the future development of their areas, over the next 12 months in particular, we will focus our efforts to help them to proactively enable development.

I announce today that we will establish a further planning hub to support housing delivery. Its approach will be informed by evidence and shaped in agreement with key partners from the public and private sectors, including the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Heads of Planning Scotland, the Improvement Service and house builders. We want the hub to enable more efficient, responsive and timely decisions and delivery. We are also supporting early adopters of masterplan consent areas and ensuring that new local development plans include a pipeline of deliverable housing land.

Thirdly, on efficiency, it will not come as a surprise to members to hear that making processes and systems more efficient is a passion of mine. In the delivery plan, we have taken a structured approach and reviewed the process from end to end to identify issues that are getting in the way of progress and determine where improvements can be made. For some, unfortunately, the planning process can be unpredictable, costly and lengthy. We will do more with planning authorities to improve and streamline procedures. For example, small and medium-sized house builders have raised concerns about planning conditions, so we are working to promote greater consistency in practice.

We know that we can do more to address proportionality. We are actively working to better align consents, streamline validation and provide a better service through processing agreements. That will help to speed up the planning process and complement the work of the national planning improvement champion, who has already been doing excellent work in the area.

In addition, I can announce that we are taking forward work on further permitted development rights, which could, for example, accelerate the change to residential use of properties above shops . We will consider that, and other options to use that powerful tool, which, essentially, removes the need for planning permission.

I can also advise that work to introduce an infrastructure levy will be stopped. Instead, the focus will be on improving guidance on planning agreements under section 75 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997. I know that that announcement will be welcomed by the industry, and I hope that it recognises that we are listening to its concerns.

Finally, we need to do more to support and increase the capacity of planning authorities. The housing planning hub will be part of that. I have already taken steps to increase planning fees to enable authorities to recoup more of the costs that are associated with planning. Although the presumption against ring fencing means that we will not direct where local authorities invest any increased revenue, I expect them to use that income to support their planning services.

We have also initiated efforts to recruit and train additional planners through a Government graduate programme and by promoting skills and training. To encourage more people to consider a career in planning, I can announce today that, next year, we will treble the number of bursaries that are available to postgraduate planning students.

In addition, we need to improve the capacity of local elected members, who are key to the planning process. Planning Aid Scotland is developing a fuller package of training for local elected members to support that.

The First Minister has made it clear that Scotland is open for business and that growing our economy by increasing investment is a key priority. Enabling more homes to be built will help to fulfil that aim, and the measures that I have set out today will benefit wider developments and projects.

However, house building must also be about home making and giving people good-quality places in which to live. We cannot develop at the expense of Scotland’s natural capital and we must continue to work towards net zero. That is how to create a sustainable economy that harnesses all Scotland’s natural and cultural assets for the benefit of current and future generations. Our policies are now designed to incentivise developers to build out their sites more quickly and to support the provision of affordable homes that meet diverse needs. Those policies and the actions that I have outlined will ensure that homes are built in planned locations that will better meet people’s needs.

Planning has not created the housing emergency, but it can help us to find solutions to the challenges that we face. Everyone who is involved in planning has a role to play in achieving that—including, not least, the Government. Through the national planning policy on housing and the delivery plan that I am publishing today, the Government is taking urgent action to hasten development and to create the homes all across Scotland that people need and deserve.