<<Office of the Deputy Prime Minister - Press Notice - NEW DAWN FOR
PLANNING AS FLAGSHIP REFORMS RECEIVE ROYAL ASSENT.txt>> The new Plannning
and Compulsory Purchase Act received Royal Assent last night.  Press release
attached.

http://www.odpm.gov.uk/pns//DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2004_0124
<http://www.odpm.gov.uk/pns//DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2004_0124>

John Gregory
Access Officer



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Office of the Deputy Prime Minister - Press Notice - NEW DAWN FOR PLANNING AS FLAGSHIP REFORMS RECEIVE ROYAL ASSENT
News Release 2004/0124:
14 May 2004
NEW DAWN FOR PLANNING AS FLAGSHIP REFORMS RECEIVE ROYAL ASSENT
The first new Planning Act for more than a decade was granted Royal Assent last 
night, paving the way for a more flexible and responsive planning system for 
England.
The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act will enable communities to play a more 
active role in creating better places to live and work, as well as making the 
planning system faster, fairer and more efficient - ensuring the right 
developments in the right place, at the right time.
The Act represents the Government's commitment to fundamental reforms of the 
planning system to nurture a strategic, proactive force for creating inclusive, 
accessible, safe and sustainable communities.
Welcoming Royal Assent, Planning Minister Keith Hill said: 
  "Two and a half years ago we set out a programme for major changes to the 
  planning system in the Planning Green paper. Now we have reached a significant 
  milestone - we have a new Planning Act.
  "Planning is about improving the quality of life and the quality of places. 
  Creating thriving, sustainable communities requires a planning system that 
  delivers. The Planning Act gives us a new system to make better plans, and 
  make better planning decisions, more quickly.
  "We must remember this Act is part of a bigger picture of planning reform. 
  Planners have an incredibly important role in shaping the look, feel and 
  design of their community and need a responsive, well resourced planning 
  system to make that work - so that's what we're delivering."
Regeneration and the Regions Minister Jeff Rooker, who took the Bill through the 
Lords, said: 
  "Good planning is crucial to regeneration and strengthening regional 
  development. This Act is a real step towards making that happen. 
  "It provides a more flexible local plan system that can respond to the 
  specific needs of particular areas, for example for regeneration. It 
  strengthens regional planning arrangements so that we can have really 
  effective, strategic regional planning. This is all about getting people back 
  into planning."
Royal Assent is the latest step in a continued programme of radical reform for 
the planning system in England. The Government has already pumped an extra £350 
million into planning delivery over three years and announced the launch of a 
Planning Advisory Service this autumn to provide support and advice to local 
authorities.
Also, for the first time, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is funding a 
bursary scheme for students undertaking "fast track" one-year post-graduate 
planning courses. 
The £1.3million scheme will fund 144 post graduate planning places at 12 
universities across the UK from September. The scheme aims to tackle the 
shortage of qualified planners faced by local planning authorities and sends out 
a clear message that the Government takes planning and planners seriously and 
means to Change the Culture of Planning by attracting good quality entrants onto 
planning courses.
Keith Hill said:
  "These bursaries will help get more students into town planning courses and 
  prepare them to really make a difference to their communities. We have a 
  radical programme of reform designed to make the planning system faster, 
  fairer and more efficient. These bursaries, coupled with the £350million 
  planning delivery grant, the Planning Advisory Service and the Act itself all 
  demonstrate our commitment to make these reforms a success."
Notes to Editors
1. The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill was introduced in the House of 
Commons in December 2002.
2. It was re-committed to Commons Committee to allow the inclusion of 
significant new material relating to the removal of crown immunity and 
compulsory purchase and carried over into the current session. It received Royal 
Assent on 13 May.
3. The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004:
  introduces a simpler and more flexible plan making system at regional and 
  local level;

  increases the effectiveness and quality of community involvement at regional 
  and local level and enables the provision of financial assistance to Planning 
  Aid

  improves the development control process by introducing powers to introduce 
  standard application forms; provides that local planning authorities may 
  decline to determine applications and changes the duration of planning 
  permission and consents;

  allows local planning authorities to introduce local permitted development 
  rights by way of local development orders; 

  speeds up the process for Major Infrastructure Projects (projects of national 
  or regional importance (airports, power stations)) by allowing the different 
  elements of inquiries to be heard concurrently rather than consecutively, as 
  now without eroding the ability of the public to participate;

  removes the crown’s immunity from planning processes; and

  makes the compulsory purchase system simpler, fairer and quicker to support 
  policies on investment in major infrastructure and on regeneration.
4. Information about the Bursaries can be found at: Bursaries Information 
(Appendix 1)



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Published 14 May 2004 

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