The Labour Party has today launched its manifesto with a strong focus on planning reform to boost the British economy.
There were no big surprises during the announcement of the manifesto by Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, instead the party reaffirmed its commitment to previously stated policies.
This included a commitment to building 1.5 million homes over the next parliament, a figure which it would achieve by bringing back mandatory housing targets. The party would also fund more planning officers, increasing stamp duty surcharges for non-UK residents to pay for them.
The manifesto read: “We will ensure local communities continue to shape housebuilding in their area, but where necessary Labour will not be afraid to make full use of intervention powers to build the houses we need.”
Labour also said that it would adopt a brownfield-first approach to development, but repeated its commitment to taking a “more strategic approach to greenbelt land designation” and utilising what it had previously named “grey belt” land to boost housing supply.
The party’s manifesto also included its plan to build new towns which was first outlined by deputy leader, Angela Rayner at the UKREiiF earlier in the year.
Labour’s New Towns plan to include 40% affordable housing target
Here’s how the industry has reacted to Labour’s manifesto:
Mark Booth, co-founder of Hayfield, said: “Labour has talked a good game on planning reform and while there’s much to like in its manifesto it stops short of the total overhaul that’s needed.”
“More stringent housebuilding targets and a modest increase in planning officers is welcome but tweaking the current system isn’t enough.”
“We need to find a solution that incentivises local planning authorities to deliver housing in all areas of the country, planning professionals are restricted by politicians whose drive is to prevaricate, prevent or posture while our housing stock reduces.”
Paul Rickard, managing director of Pocket Living, said: “Given that the downturn in construction remains the biggest drag on this nation’s GDP, planning reform without the need to increase public spending should be low-hanging fruit for any future government. This manifesto seems to be a genuine attempt at starting that difficult and long overdue process and getting more new homes built, though it is vital that we focus on numbers delivered as opposed to specific tenures.”
“We all know that brownfield and previously developed sites offer the best prospect of increasing supply, which is why we welcome the strong focus on them. However, these sites can only be unlocked by streamlining the planning process, along the lines we have suggested for small sites by granting a presumption in favour of development provided that affordable housing requirements are met. With the SME sector staring down the barrel of extinction, the need for these types of policies has never been greater and we would urge Labour to be radical in their approach. Overall we welcome the ambition, and should Labour form the next government we look forward to working with them to deliver this with the urgency required.”
Justin Young, chief executive of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), said: “Labour is right in identifying planning reforms as a policy lever for boosting economic productivity in today’s manifesto, with numerous academic studies having found positive correlation between GDP growth and housebuilding completions. But the opportunities that arise from reform go well beyond housing. Legislation that makes the delivery of any infrastructure is welcomed; red tape is currently acting as a significant barrier to growth. One such example can be found in Cambridge, where the failure to deliver a new water reservoir is threatening to stall the UK’s fast-growing, £94bn-a-year life sciences industry, which has a critical mass in the city.”
“As well as speeding up decision-making, planning reform is needed for our housebuilding sector to function efficiently, which is needed if build targets are to be met. Forty years ago, SME housebuilders were responsible for around 40% of housing delivery annually, but in 2024, that number is below 10%. To make matters worse, the number of SME housebuilders has decreased by 80% over the last 30 years. When taking these facts into account, it becomes very apparent why we continue to face a housing crisis and fall short of our housing targets. A simplification of the planning system – which is currently expensive to navigate and riddled with uncertainty – should help reverse this decline by delivering significant certainty.”
“Policymakers must also address the skills shortage – otherwise the UK will be unable to deliver on its 300,000-homes-a-year target and £805 billion infrastructure pipeline. To overcome these challenges, RICS wants the incoming government, whoever that may be, to consider and implement workable policy solutions. We are calling for the creation of a cross-department skills taskforce, responsible for identifying gaps and opportunities in the workforce, as Labour has set out to do with their proposed Skills England body.”
Melanie Leech, chief executive of the British Property Federation, commented: “It’s positive to see Labour reaffirm their commitment to an industrial strategy and to working closely with business to deliver its ambitions. The property industry has the desire, skills and capital to invest in the UK’s built environment and a clear economic strategy and a re-set of our partnership with the next Government will unlock billions of pounds to build the more productive economy, new homes, rejuvenated town centres and sustainable future the UK needs.”
“Labour is right to focus on improving the planning system as the key enabler of growth. Introducing effective strategic planning means that decisions are made at the appropriate national or regional level, rather than just locally, which will allow us to deliver more homes against a clear target and also provide the logistics infrastructure and business spaces we need to support sustainable communities. Measures to ensure up-to-date local plans are in place and a new approach to ‘grey belt’ land are also welcome, as is the commitment to more local authority planners so that existing projects can be unblocked, and local authorities are better able to engage with our sector to provide for future needs.”
