UK councils have been told they must “play their part” as the government set out mandatory house-building targets and loosened planning restrictions in its bid to create 1.5 million new homes in the coming years.
Local authorities will have to collectively deliver a total of 370,000 new homes a year under the target, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said.
Areas with the least amounts of affordable housing will also see building targets increase more, while green-belt boundaries will be reviewed but brownfield sites will be prioritised.
Councils will have 12 weeks from Thursday’s publishing of an updated National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to commit to timetables for new building plans, after which ministers “will not hesitate to use their existing suite of intervention powers to ensure plans are put in place”.
New so-called ‘golden rules’ will mean developers on greenbelt land must meet strict requirements to provide the necessary infrastructure for local communities, such as nurseries, GP surgeries and transport, as well as a premium level of social and affordable housing.
“We must all do our bit and we must all do more,” deputy prime minister Angela Rayner said.
“We expect every local area to adopt a plan to meet their housing need. The question is where the homes and local services people expect are built, not whether they are built at all.”