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| Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill | |
|---|---|
| Name | Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill |
| Introduced | 2022 |
| Introduced by | Rishi Sunak (as Prime Minister) |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Status | Active |
Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill is a United Kingdom parliamentary bill introduced to reform planning, housing, devolution, and economic development frameworks across England with implications for Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. It seeks to update statutory powers related to local authority decision-making, land use, and funding mechanisms while aligning with prior initiatives such as the Levelling Up White Paper, the Housing and Planning Act 2016, and regional strategies like the Northern Powerhouse. The bill has been the focus of sustained debate involving major political figures, devolved administrations, think tanks, and civil society organisations.
The bill follows policy trajectories set by Boris Johnson's administration, echoed by Theresa May-era statements and successors such as Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, and responds to pressures from campaigns led by National Housing Federation, Shelter, and industry bodies including the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Federation of Master Builders. It draws on statutory frameworks established by the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, the Localism Act 2011, and reforms proposed in the Levelling Up White Paper. Internationally, commentators compare its aims to regional initiatives like Germany's Spatial Planning arrangements and France's Aménagement du territoire.
Key provisions propose changes to planning rules promulgated under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, introduce statutory duties for local authorities analogous to provisions in the Local Government Act 2000, and create frameworks for strategic development akin to London Plan processes overseen by the Mayor of London. The bill aims to accelerate housing delivery with mechanisms similar to Starter Homes Initiative and to reform compulsory purchase powers that mirror precedents set in legislation such as the Land Compensation Act 1961. It also contemplates enhanced statutory duties for mayors and combined authorities modelled on Greater Manchester Combined Authority powers and draws on governance patterns from the Tees Valley Combined Authority.
Proposals affect devolution settlements involving entities like the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government, and the Northern Ireland Executive while engaging with city-regions such as Liverpool City Region, West Midlands Combined Authority, and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. The bill reconfigures planning hierarchies that implicate the Planning Inspectorate, local planning authorities such as Birmingham City Council and Manchester City Council, and national bodies like the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (now called Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities). It proposes new statutory spatial strategies reminiscent of approaches in the Greater London Authority Act 1999 and negotiates tensions between unitary councils like Bristol City Council and county structures such as Kent County Council.
Measures target brownfield regeneration exemplified by projects in Barking and Dagenham, Glasgow, and Cardiff Bay, seek to unlock sites akin to Ebbsfleet Garden City, and aim to increase affordable housing delivery comparable to schemes promoted by the Homes England agency. Changes to permitted development rights, density rules and design codes echo debates involving the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Design Council. The bill also addresses compulsory purchase and viability frameworks that stakeholders from the National Housing Federation, Home Builders Federation, and local housing associations have contested in parliamentary committees chaired by MPs such as Michael Gove and Yvette Cooper.
The bill establishes funding mechanisms intended to complement existing programmes like the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, while intersecting with industrial strategies promoted by Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and investments from entities including the British Business Bank. It contemplates fiscal tools for combined authorities similar to mayoral precept powers used by the Mayor of London and seeks to influence regeneration finance models used in projects by Homes England, Urban Regeneration Companies, and private developers represented by the Confederation of British Industry.
Support has come from some Conservative mayors, developers within the Home Builders Federation, and pro-devolution think tanks such as the Institute for Government, while opposition has emerged from opposition parties like the Labour Party (UK), the Scottish National Party, and pressure groups including Friends of the Earth and CPRE (Campaign to Protect Rural England). Debates in media outlets such as The Guardian, The Times, Financial Times, and on programmes like BBC Newsnight and Channel 4 News have highlighted conflicts between centralisation advocates and local autonomy proponents, with commentary from figures including David Cameron and Keir Starmer influencing public discourse.
The bill was introduced in the House of Commons and subjected to committee scrutiny in sessions attended by ministers from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and chaired by select committees such as the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee. It encountered amendments proposed by MPs from constituencies including Islington North and South Shields, and scrutiny stages in the House of Lords involving peers from parties like the Conservative Party (UK), the Labour Party (UK), and the Liberal Democrats (UK). Debates referenced precedents from legislation like the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 and examined evidence provided by organisations including Chartered Institute of Housing and National Audit Office.
Category:United Kingdom proposed laws