Chancellor Rachel Reeves has ordered courts to open hearings on judicial review processes which could threaten to block critical infrastructure projects within four months of an application being made as part of a pre-Budget rush to introduce growth-inducing reforms.
As part of a new set of planning-related proposals on Wednesday, the High Court will have to proceed with a hearing on applications regarding critical infrastructure projects within four months as the Labour government hopes to fast-track construction of key projects including nuclear power stations and transport links.
Reeves has said she will ensure judicial reviews in the High Court over critical infrastructure projects do not hold the UK economy “to ransom for too long”.
Government officials are also proposing that judges in the Court of Appeal have appropriate planning experience to deal with complex cases.
The new plans are not part of any legislation as Treasury officials said they will work with the courts to implement procedural changes and reduce delays to critical infrastructure projects. Reforms may be tricky to push through, however, given the judiciary’s independence.
Infrastructure proposals aimed at boosting growth
The changes come as part of a wider Reeves-led effort to push through planning reforms in order to boost growth forecasts as the government begins to lose hope that it will meet its housebuilding targets.
There are growing expectations that downgrades by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will contribute to a £30bn fiscal hole at the Budget.
The OBR judged the government’s initial planning bill to be positive for the UK economy and it upgraded forecasts for future years, but the bill has since been watered down after amendments related to environmental protection were accepted.
New policy proposals that do not lead to concrete changes, made possible through legislation, will be ignored by the OBR.
“The previous government sided with the blockers, who held our economy to ransom for too long, abusing the lengthy judicial review process to delay critical national infrastructure projects and holding back economic growth,” Reeves said.
“Our planning reforms are set to benefit the economy by up to £7.5bn over the next ten years, so whether through reducing the length of the judicial review process, tearing up burdensome regulations, or streamlining planning permissions with AI, we want to go further still by backing the builders not the blockers and deliver national renewal by getting Britain building.”
Sam Dumitriu of Britain Remade said “there’s some welcome measures here, but the idea they’re ‘bulldozing barriers’ is way over-the-top.”
‘Build, baby, build’
A Centre for British Progress poll of 100 economists said the government should “spend political capital” on introducing planning reforms while housing secretary Steve Reed has championed the mantra “build, baby, build” since replacing Angela Rayner last month.
Reed pointed to the statistics showing that just four out of 24 judicial reviews have been upheld in the last 17 years as evidence the system had been “abused by those who want to stop progress at any cost”.
The latest proposals are separate to government amendments being tabled to the planning bill, which is still passing through parliament.
Among the pro-growth reforms in the amendments include giving ministers new powers to prevent applications being rejected by local councils and allowing non-water sector companies to build reservoirs, which would be considered as nationally significant infrastructure projects.
The government also hopes to stop planning permissions for major housing schemes from being timed out, which also represents a clamp down on lengthy judicial reviews. The government said it was acting on an independent review by Tory peer Charles Banner on delays in the legal process.
Reeves attends IMF meetings
Reeves’ planning reforms are set to be a topic of discussion in Washington DC as she arrives for the International Monetary Fund’s annual meeting.
Speaking to businesses and investors on Wednesday, Reeves will claim that the government is cutting red tape to allow financial giants to invest in Britain while championing the UK as a “stable, open, trading economy”.
Labour’s infrastructure plans will be a key aspect of Reeves’ pitch to investors and financial leaders, with the government’s plan to spend £120bn more on capital and infrastructure set to be costed as part of her commitment to abide by fiscal rules.
“In Washington I will showcase Britain’s commitment to fiscal responsibility – while creating the conditions to boost productivity, attract investment and secure our place as a strong and credible partner in a stable global economy.”
She will also urge finance ministers to cut Russia’s access to energy revenues, claiming sanctions have led to the country’s economy suffering a hit worth up to £390bn.