Introduction

While Father Christmas is busy writing his naughty and nice lists, the rest of us are frantically trying to get through our ‘to-do’ lists before Christmas really kicks in.

And it’s no different for the Labour Government, which has been trying to get something ticked off its wishlist for a while now – unblocking the UK’s housing crisis.

There’s a sense of an early New Year’s resolution on the cards, with the Government stressing the urgency of the crisis, the need to centralise decision-making and the importance of removing barriers to development.

In this blog we’ll take a look at everything on the pre and post-Christmas cards including the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) consultation, National Development Management Policies (NDMPs), statutory consultee changes and more.

Stick with us – it’s going to be a cracker.

Christmas consultation

Originally slated for a December release, the Government has now said it will consult on a new ‘pro-growth and rules-based’ National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) before the end of the year, in order to implement a raft of planning reforms.

The proposals include a requirement that Councils inform the Government when they are inclined to block applications of 150 homes or more.

Some of the themes we’re expecting to see include:

• Default yes for homes around train stations (including in the Green Belt).
• Minimum density standards for transport-connected areas.
• Council overrule powers: LPAs must notify government when they intend to block schemes of 150+ homes (especially where defying officer recommendation) so ministers can intervene.

National Development Management Policies (NDMPs)

NDMPs are national policies for decision-making to standardise requirements across the Country. Whilst it was originally announced these would be enshrined in law, the Government is now proposing these to be non-statutory meaning they are likely to have less of an impact - a missed opportunity in our opinion. They will sit alongside the NPPF and shape how local authorities handle applications, and we’re expecting them to be published alongside the NPPF consultation.

Statutory Consultee Reform – consultation live

Open from Tuesday 18^th November until Tuesday 13^th January 2026, the Statutory Consultee Reform agenda aims to speed up planning decisions by removing or reducing mandatory consultations that do not add value.

Examples of bodies proposed for removal include Sport England, The Gardens Trust, Theatres Trust and others.

Plan-making resolutions

The 30-month Local Plan cycle is a key reform under the UK's Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA) – one that Labour is keen to re-establish.

The aim is to speed up the production and adoption of local development plans, reducing the timeframe to 30 months as opposed to the current process which takes an average of seven years. 

The new system is designed to be simpler, faster, and more digitally enabled, focusing only on locally important matters, while national development management policies cover common considerations. 

We are expecting clearer direction on intervention where plans are out of date, stalled or failing housing delivery. This is a major part of the ‘rules-based system’ and may be referenced in the NPPF consultation.

Budget bells are ringing

Labour’s Autumn Budget has received a mixed response across the country and is likely to have an indirect impact on development viability, delivery and saleability.

Key measures announced or reaffirmed include:

• The Planning and Infrastructure Bill formally positioned as the primary legislative vehicle for accelerating housing delivery, speeding up major infrastructure consents, reducing regulatory barriers and improving certainty for developers and investors.
• A package of Judicial Review reforms for planning and infrastructure cases aimed at reducing delays.
• £48 million of additional funding for the planning system, including the recruitment of 350 additional planners in England, expansion of the Pathways to Planning Graduate Scheme and the creation of a Planning Careers Hub. In practical terms, this equates to only just over one additional planner per Local Planning Authority.
• Reaffirmation of the target to deliver 1.5 million homes during this Parliament.
• Minimum wage increases, which will feed through to higher construction labour costs.
• Increased taxes on rental income for private landlords from April 2027, alongside higher dividend taxes, with potential implications for investor behaviour and buy-to-let viability.

The Budget confirms that the Government’s growth strategy relies heavily on planning reform unlocking private investment in housing and infrastructure. This position is reflected by the Office for Budget Responsibility, whose forecasts for housing output and construction growth are explicitly built on the success of planning reforms, faster consenting times and increased local authority capacity.

However, current market conditions remain challenging. Weak consumer confidence, persistent planning backlogs, rising input costs and an increasingly hostile environment in which to do business are not yet creating the conditions needed to unlock delivery at scale. At Squires Planning, we remain cautious and unconvinced that the current approach goes far enough to generate the step-change in delivery that is needed, but we sincerely hope that the reforms prove us wrong.

New year, new policies?

Labour has also hinted at refining Biodiversity Net Gain rules and exploring a strategic fund to deliver environmental improvements. Before Christmas or early in 2026 we may well see:

• A formal response to the recent working paper consultation
• Clarification on small-site exemptions following a review earlier in 2025
• Draft regulations or indicative policy commitments

The current policy will likely remain in place for another 12 months, as changes will require secondary (and maybe primary) legislation.

The Planning & Infrastructure Bill is currently being wrapped up, with Royal Assent expected in early 2026. It forms a cornerstone of Labour’s rules-based system and will reshape how projects are assessed and delivered.

Key measures include:

• Environmental Outcomes Reports (EORs) replacing Environmental Impact Assessments with an outcomes-focused approach
• NSIP Streamlining to enable faster decisions for nationally significant infrastructure projects
• Section 73 Variations to offer new flexibility for amending permissions mid-delivery
• Digitalisation processes across plan-making and applications

Water neutrality drips away

After four years of constraints, one of the most significant environmental hurdles in the South East of England has finally been lifted.

In November 2025, Natural England withdrew its water neutrality requirement, ending a policy hurdle that has restricted development in parts of Sussex since 2021.

Introduced to protect sensitive habitats in the Arun Valley, the policy required new developments in areas like Horsham, Crawley, Chichester and wider North Sussex to mitigate against increased water consumption. This has necessitated complex offsetting measures, additional infrastructure and higher costs, which has stalled or derailed many housing schemes.

Whilst water efficiency standards remain in place and Local Authorities will still consider environmental impacts, the removal of this policy will inevitably unlock important new developments.

For developers and landowners, this is the moment to review stalled or conditioned permissions and reassess viability for sites previously written off.

Unwrapping the opportunities

The changes we’ve looked at, Labour hopes, are here to lubricate the planning system and get the UK delivering on the new houses it needs.

There are now opportunities to not only consider new sites, for example on green belt land close to railway stations, but also to revisit schemes previously dismissed due to constraints.

The planning reforms also seek to speed up the process, through digitalisation and the removal of unnecessary statutory consultees, taking some pressure off developers as they seek to bring forward schemes.

It’s also an important time to engage in any ongoing consultations which will shape the planning framework over the next decade.

Labour ‘jingling some of the way’ to planning reform

Labour’s sleigh is loaded with planning reforms to help unblock the system, although delivery will take time, and real progress will depend on the private sector being able to start building again. London is a clear example, where activity has almost ground to a halt. Industry analysis shows that fewer than 5,000 new homes are expected to start construction this year, compared with more than 60,000 under construction at typical levels in previous years.

The tone is being set though for a planning system that moves more freely, whilst still operating with clear guidance for Local Authorities and developers.

Stay merry and bright with Squires Planning

Keeping up to date and engaging with changes in the planning system can be a full-time job in itself, which is why Squires Planning is here to support our clients.

From consultation responses to strategic advice, expertise on proposal reviews in light of changes, applications, appeals or expert evidence, our years of experience make us your trusted partner in the complex world of planning.

Book a meeting with one of our team today to harness our expertise.