Ministers are making ready to cap the income landowners could make from promoting inexperienced belt land as a part of the federal government’s technique to ship 1.5 million new houses by 2030.
The proposed reforms would give councils the ability to compulsorily buy inexperienced belt land at a decrease “benchmark” worth, curbing the potential for landowners to money in on websites beforehand ineligible for improvement.
The transfer comes as Labour seeks to deal with the UK’s housing scarcity, with specialists warning that reaching the bold goal will doubtless require constructing on each “grey belt” and greenfield websites. The inexperienced belt, which spans greater than 6,300 sq. miles and covers roughly 13 per cent of England, was initially established to stop city sprawl, however some areas have already been developed.
The federal government is consulting on modifications to the Nationwide Planning Coverage Framework (NPPF), which might drive councils to establish ample land to satisfy their housing wants. Underneath the proposed system, if landowners in high-demand areas refuse to promote, councils may purchase their land at a worth decrease than the market worth of comparable non-green belt websites. This may be achieved by means of a “benchmark” worth system designed to stop inflated costs linked to future planning permission.
Ministers additionally plan to make use of obligatory buy orders (CPOs) to safe land the place mandatory, with compensation based mostly on the land’s present use reasonably than its potential improvement worth. This measure goals to make sure land is acquired at a good worth, stopping landowners from holding out for greater affords or delaying the discharge of much-needed improvement websites.
Critics of the plan embody marketing campaign teams and planning specialists, who argue that these measures may result in the event of greenfield websites reasonably than specializing in brownfield areas. Whereas the federal government emphasises a “brownfield-first” method, there may be concern that obscure definitions of “grey belt” may open the door to broader greenfield improvement.
Matthew Spry, a senior director at planning consultancy Lichfields, warned that many native authorities would possibly battle to satisfy their housing targets with out resorting to greenfield improvement within the inexperienced belt. “The reality is that in order to meet the targets, this will require building on land that many will regard as greenfield, not just the areas of brownfield land in the green belt that has been commonly talked about,” Spry stated.
Business sources have additionally raised issues concerning the potential backlash from landowners. One senior determine recommended that capping land costs under market worth may discourage landowners from promoting, doubtlessly delaying the event course of. They argued that whereas CPOs may very well be used, these are sometimes time-consuming and bureaucratic, which can hinder the federal government’s potential to satisfy its housing targets inside the desired timeframe.
The countryside charity CPRE expressed additional worries, suggesting that some landowners would possibly intentionally degrade their inexperienced belt websites to make them eligible for improvement below the brand new guidelines. “We have got concerns about the wording and that so-called grey belt could ultimately end up including greenfield land,” stated Lizzie Bundred Woodward, a planning coverage supervisor at CPRE.
The ministry of housing, communities and native authorities responded by reiterating its dedication to preserving the inexperienced belt and prioritising brownfield land for improvement. A consultant acknowledged, “We will reform the outdated compulsory purchase process to remove inflated values of land and ensure compensation paid to landowners is fair but not excessive. We will also use lower quality ‘grey belt’ land, like wasteland or old car parks, and introduce ‘golden rules’ to ensure that development benefits both communities and nature.”
As the federal government navigates the complicated problem of balancing housing wants with land preservation, the proposed reforms may set the stage for a big transformation in how inexperienced belt land is managed and developed within the coming years.
