LONDON, July 2 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:

* Planning reforms could cut pre-application time by up to 12 months and save developers £1 billion on major infrastructure projects * Green-lit projects alreadysetto create 82,000 jobsand generate more clean energy annually to power homes and businesses * Government on trackto decide150 major infrastructureprojectsthis Parliament, nearly triple the last Parliament

Britain is set to buildwindandsolar farms, nuclear plants,reservoirsand new transport linksatthefastest pace in a generation undermajorinfrastructure planning reforms.

Delivered throughthe landmark Planning and Infrastructure Act,changesconfirmedtoday (Friday 3 July), and coming into effect later this month,will scrap mandatorypre-application consultation requirements for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs)- cutting up to12 months from the planning processandpotentiallysavingindustry£1 billionthis Parliament.

In their place, developers will receive earliertechnical supportandmeaningfuladvicefrom the Planning Inspectoratebefore applications aresubmitted, withexaminationsstreamlined to focus on thekey issuesthat matter - getting projects through the system faster and with greater certainty.Over 80 prospective applicants have alreadybenefitedfrom early advice to help shape their proposed applicationssince the launch of the Inspectorate'snew pre-application service.

Since taking office, the government has made 41 decisions on major infrastructure projects - including Mona Offshore Wind Farm,Gate Burton EnergyParkand the Lower Thames Crossing - double thepreviousParliament's tally at this stage.

These major infrastructure projectscouldcreate over 82,000 jobs and generate more clean energy annually to power millions of homes and businesses across the country. Thanks to new reforms, more projects will also enter the pipeline at a faster rate-putting the government on track to exceed its target ofat least150major infrastructuredecisions this Parliament.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said:

This government is determined to make the UK a world leader in building infrastructure.

Our reforms will get work started quicker on wind farms, solar panels and transport links to connect our communities and grow our economy.

Energy Minister Michael Shanks said:

Britain cannot afford to wait years for the clean energy infrastructureneeded to strengthen our energy security and grow the economy.

Every turbine, every solar panel, every cable we connect helps protect families from volatile fossil fuel markets and paves the way for a new era of clean energy for our country.

Today's reforms come as the Act's wider reforms are already keeping major NSIP projects moving. New limits on totally without merit legal challenges were recently tested in the Stonestreet Green Solar case, where the court rapidly dismissed a meritless claim - saving a solar project that will power around 42,000 homes from months of unnecessary delay.

Much-needed infrastructure like data centres cannowopt in to the NSIP regime that allows developers to rapidly deliverthese projects, if granted, through strict, fixedtimeframesrather thanfacing endless delays locally.Ministers havealready directedthreedata centreproposalsinto theNSIPregimeatWapseysWood in Buckinghamshire, Ampthill Road in Bedford, and New Barn Lane in Dartford.

As part of the wider package of reforms already underway, localauthoritiesare also being supported to keep pace with the accelerating pipeline ofinfrastructure, as they can now settheir own fees to recover costs for NSIP-relatedwork and bid for up to £1 million through Round 3 of the Innovation and Capacity Fund.

The Planning Inspectorate is alreadyputting these changes into practice, withEast West Railamong the firstNSIP projectstobenefitfrommore structuredpre-applicationsupportand an ambition to deliver amore targeted examination process cutting overall timescales.In addition, onshore wind projects seeking permission through the Town and Country Planning Act are alsoset to be freed fromthe mandatorypre-application consultation requirementsfor the first time since 2015.

Thenews comes asExamining Authorities made 20 recommendations to ministers on NSIPs last year, an 18% increase compared to the previous year, and these applications were processed more quickly than statutory maximum timescales.Theyhavealsorecruitedmore inspectors,enabled by£2.2millionadditionalfundingprovidedsince 2024, buildingon £48 millioncommitted last year tostrengthen planning capacity across the public sector witharound 1,400 new recruitments this Parliament.

Head of Infrastructure Decisions and Applications Service at the Planning Inspectorate, David Price said:

"The Infrastructure Service at the Planning Inspectorate has worked closely with MHCLG throughout the development of the Planning and Infrastructure Act and is ready to support its successful implementation. We are committed to working collaboratively with applicants,stakeholdersand delivery partners to help realise the ambitions of the legislation and support a more targeted infrastructure consenting process."

Further information

Changes set out in the government's consultation response on NSIP reforms include:

* New guidance on the pre-application period to support the removal of statutory consultation. * Redesigning services provided by the Planning Inspectorate to support developers during pre-application with earlier technical input and meaningful advice from inspectors. * Encouraging the earlier submission of Local Impact Reports (LIRs), including draft LIRs, alongside relevant representations to inform the Examining Authority of Principal Issues and focus on key local impacts. * Supporting efficient and streamlined examinationsthrough greater focus onInitial Assessments of Principal Issues (IAPIs). This is when Examining Authoritiesidentifythe key issues for examinationand use them to focus the structure and conduct of examinations on the key issues, while continuing to consider all relevant matters. * A more streamlined process for other planning routes by removing mandatory pre-application consultation requirements that currently apply to certain onshore wind projects seeking permission through the Town and Country Planning Act. Legislation currently dictates that up to and including 100MW facilities are evaluated by local authorities rather than the centralised NSIP process.

We will set out further details of the new guidance shortly, including on the pre-application period to support the removal of the statutory consultation, which will come into effect on 24 July.

An implementation plan to streamline infrastructure planning was published earlier this year.

The application period for Round 3 of the Innovation and Capacity Fund has now closed and the government is assessing the applications. The fund offers additional financial support for local authorities to engage in the NSIP process.

The governmentis committed to fast-track decisions on at least 150 major economic infrastructure by the end of this Parliament. This isnearly triplethe 59 Development Consent Order decisions taken in thepreviousParliament, and exceeding the total of 138 NSIP decisions made since 2011.

A record 21 decisions were made on major infrastructure in the first year of this Parliament.

The significant pro-growth changes in the landmark Planning and Infrastructure Act will see up to £7.5 billion injected into the UK economy over the next decade.

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.