When it comes to the thorny problem of green belt, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner is expected to instruct local authorities to regularly review their green belt boundaries, marking a clear change from her predecessors’ policies.
Particular attention will be paid to the 'grey belt', that is, previously developed or low quality land that has limited environmental credentials.
Setting these targets at a national level is laudable. The real test will be whether it can be implemented in the face of local opposition. More than 10 years after the NPPF was first introduced, 52 local authorities still do not have a post-NPPF plan, and 60 per cent of those are in areas that contain green belt, highlighting the scale of the planning challenge.
Finally, reforming planning is just one piece of the housebuilding puzzle. The residential development market is facing other headwinds, although the sales market will hopefully pick up with base rate cuts likely in the second half of the year.
Other challenges will be harder to resolve. Large scale development needs to be supported by infrastructure investment. Grid capacity and water availability are delaying schemes in many parts of the country. More grant funding is needed to resolve the lack of financial capacity among affordable providers.
In reality, it will take years for changes to planning regulations to feed through to a level of housebuilding that can provide an economic boost.
Monday’s announcements were a step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go to resolve England’s housing crisis.
Emily Williams is director of residential research at Savills
