UK Pushes Planning Bill to Unblock Infrastructure Projects
Construction workers carry out road improvement works in the City of London, UK, on Feb. 12.
Photographer: Betty Laura Zapata/BloombergThe UK’s Labour government will introduce long-promised legislation on Tuesday to speed up planning decisions as ministers seek to help stimulate growth through a step-change in housebuilding and by unblocking infrastructure projects from roads to wind farms.
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill includes financial rewards worth £2,500 ($3,200) over 10 years for those living within 500 meters (1,600 feet) of new pylons, priority access to grid connections for clean energy projects and a faster approvals regime for infrastructure projects deemed to be of national significance, according to an emailed statement late on Monday from the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.