BPF welcomes national planning framework

The British Property Federation has welcomed the Department for Communities and Local Government's announcement that it is to begin consulting on a national planning framework for England.

Already in place in Scotland, the framework is expected to replace the current regime of planning policy statements and guidance notes, which many in the industry feel contributes to some of the confusion and conflict in planning.

Liz Peace, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said: "The planning system has become unwieldy and needs to be pared back.

"The proposed National Planning Framework should be the vehicle for doing this. The key objective should be to revise the scale and nature of national guidance to create a clear but minimal set of central rules that underpin all good planning decisions.

"Getting the right framework in place will require the active involvement of the development community and other stakeholders. We very much welcome, therefore, the government's commitment today to enter into a process of constructive engagement with interested bodies and look forward to contributing actively to that process."