BPF comment on Secretary of State's announcement on housing delivery and new consultation on permitted development rights

The British Property Federation, the voice of the UK property sector, has responded to an announcement by Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Michael Gove MP on housing delivery on brownfield sites and a new consultation on Permitted Development Rights.

Melanie Leech, Chief Executive, British Property Federation commented:

“We have long highlighted that the planning system is a brake on growth and housing delivery and we are pleased Michael Gove has responded to the call in our Manifesto to focus on the potential for urban brownfield sites to unlock millions of pounds of investment and deliver homes and jobs to support local prosperity.  The Government must now ensure that local authorities are properly resourced to take advantage of these opportunities at pace.

“The extension to PDR may help bring some vacant properties back into use but this is not a silver bullet for housing delivery. Only a small number of buildings are likely to be suitable for homes and it is paramount that there is effective ‘quality control’ in place to make sure that we do not end up with poor quality homes in our town centres.”