Slowdown in planning applications and decisions
Property lawyer says “The government have had a year to make improvements to house building and have not made any progress.”
Housing Secretary Steve Reed has announced a “building acceleration package” to speed up house building in England after new figures revealed a slowdown in planning applications and decisions.
David Smith, property litigation partner at London law firm Spector Constant & Williams said: “The government have had a year to make improvements to house building and have not made any progress. Despite promises from the new Housing Secretary there is little chance that they will meet their commitment to build 1.5million houses in this Parliament. The only question now is by how much that target will be missed.”
Reed, who became Housing Secretary in September, promised the “biggest era of house building in our country’s history” and vowed to work with London Mayor Sadiq Khan, where approval rates are lowest. The package will also address the performance of the Building Safety Regulator.
Between April and June 2025, local authorities received 80,400 planning applications, down 5% on last year, and decided 80,800, a 1% fall. While approvals rose slightly to 70,800, Reed called the figures “unacceptable” and pledged to push forward reforms to deliver Labour’s target of 1.5 million new homes this Parliament.
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