It will be very interesting to see how radical the new Labour government dares to be with their proposed pro-development planning reforms. They have certainly set themselves a lofty target of 1.5 million new homes over the course of the next parliament, equating to 300,000 per year (for reference, 212,570 homes were built in 2023). The new government’s proposals include re-introducing mandatory housing targets for local governments, building new towns and urban extensions in areas of low housing supply, re-writing the guidance in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to strengthen the presumption in favour of sustainable development and unlocking the greenbelt through a policy of preserving so-called “high quality” greenbelt land whilst releasing lower quality “grey belt” land for development.   

A sign that the housebuilding industry is taking Labour’s plans seriously was seen on Friday when the share price of many big housebuilders rose following Labour’s landslide victory, with Barratt Developments price rising by 2.4%, Taylor Wimpey by 2.8% and Persimmon by 2.2%. However, only time will tell whether these reforms will lead to the required increase in housing delivery in the face of the longstanding planning, infrastructure and political challenges which recent administrations have grappled with and struggled to overcome. Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves et al will need to defeat the so-called NIMBYs once and for all if they are to stand any chance of achieving their ambitious targets.