The new Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 is one of Keir Starmer鈥檚 flagship pieces of legislation, designed to accelerate the development of housing and infrastructure and promote economic growth.
The government claims that it will get dozens of new roads, railway lines, windfarms, and key critical infrastructure built quicker.
New powers allow reservoirs to be built faster, enable a new scheme to slash energy bills for people living near pylons by up to 拢2,500, and support clean power projects being prioritised for grid connections.聽聽聽聽
Key changes in the Act include:聽聽聽聽聽
- the new Nature Restoration Fund will allow developers to offset environmental damage they cause by paying into a central repair fund聽聽聽
- litigants objecting to government decisions on major infrastructure projects will only one be allowed one attempt at a court challenge instead of three, if the court deems their case to be without merit
- local authority planning committees reformed to focus on the most significant developments, leaving decisions on smaller projects to unelected council officers
- new powers for development corporations to speed up delivery of large-scale projects, including new towns聽聽聽聽聽聽聽
- simplifying the approval process for electric vehicle (EV) chargers on public roads
- electricity bill discounts of up to 拢250 a year for 10 years for people lumbered with new pylons and transmission infrastructure on their doorstep聽聽聽聽
- reform of compulsory purchase order system to making it easier for the state to acquire private land.
Housing secretary Steve Reed said: 鈥淏ritain鈥檚 growth has been held back by a sluggish planning system, slamming the brakes on building and standing in the way of fixing the housing crisis for good.聽 Today that changes. Our landmark Planning and Infrastructure Act will tear down barriers to growth, and this means getting spades in the ground faster, unshackling projects stuck in planning limbo and crucially unlocking a win-win for the environment and the economy.聽聽聽聽
鈥淲e鈥檙e ushering in a new era to build 1.5 million homes that will give families a secure roof over their head, alongside key infrastructure to create high-paying jobs and power our homes and businesses. That鈥檚 exactly the Britain I want to see so it鈥檚 time to get on with the job and build, baby, build.鈥澛犅�
Chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves added: 鈥淲e promised to grasp the nettle of planning reform 鈥� and we鈥檙e delivering. This landmark legislation ends years of dither and delay that has held back too many vital projects, like Lower Thames Crossing and Sizewell C.聽聽聽聽
鈥淎nd we鈥檙e not stopping there, this government will leave no stone unturned to get spades in the ground 鈥� building the homes families need and the infrastructure our economy needs to thrive.鈥澛犅犅犅�
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