Government proposes new ‘special measures’ metric to reduce the council's use of extension of time agreements

Under new government proposals, local authorities could be stripped of their planning powers if they fail to decide enough applications within the 8 week statutory time limit with no exceptions for agreed extensions of time.

A consultation document, entitled “An accelerated planning system: consultation”, was published by the government, after the conclusion of chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s budget address. 
Previously, secretary of state for levelling up Michael Gove announced plans to clamp down on the use of extension of time agreements which many local authorities have been taking advantage of and playing with the planning system to buy them extra time.

An extension of time agreement is a mechanism by which an applicant can agree with the local planning authority an extended time period to determine a planning application, beyond the statutory time limit which is usually 8 weeks. Under the current planning system, if an application is determined within an agreed extended time period even though the statutory time limit has passed, it is deemed to be determined ‘in time’ and does not count against the overall performance of a local planning authority.

But according to the consultation, “while extension of time agreements can offer benefits to both a local planning authority and applicant, the government knows that extension of time agreements can also be used by authorities to compensate for delays in decision-making, which masks poor performance and does not incentivise local authorities to determine applications within the statutory time limit”. 
The document notes that the use of agreements has increased significantly in recent years.

The government are not in consultation to ensure that extensions of time agreements are not an option for local authorities.

Under the proposals, authorities would be required to determine 50 per cent of major applications and 60 per cent of non-major applications within the statutory time limit or face designation.

In the current planning system, local council’s can be designated in ‘special measures’ for poor development management performance for failing to meet either speed or quality of decision making over a 2 year period. 
If designated, development can apply for planning permission directly to the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) who are based in Bristol and represent the government as opposed to the local authority.
Authorities could be designated if they fail to meet either, or both, of these metrics, it states. 

It also proposes that the assessment period for speed of decision making be reduced from 2 years to 1 year to “ensure that both improvement and underperformance are identified effectively at an earlier stage”. 

The consultation sets out the government’s proposed transitional arrangements, which would see “data collection for the new 1 year assessment period for the new performance measure beginning from 1 October 2024”. 

The consultation also proposes the removal of the ability to use extension of time agreements for householder applications. 

Meanwhile, the document also sets out the government’s plans to expand the “simplified” appeal process to planning written representation appeals in a bid to “reduce pressure on local planning authorities”. 

4D Planning welcome the government’s efforts to tackle the massive delay in public sector processing of planning applications and planning officer’s reliance on ‘extensions of time’ which is unhelpful to the planning system and to the growth of the housing sector.