SFHA welcomes “thorough and far-reaching” Planning Bill report
Scottish Parliament Local Government and Communities Committee releases report on the Scottish Government’s draft Planning Bill.
The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) has welcomed the Scottish Parliament Local Government and Communities Committee report on the Scottish Government’s draft Planning Bill and described it as “thorough and far-reaching”.
Sarah Boyack, Head of Public Affairs at SFHA, said:
“The SFHA recognises that the new Planning Bill represents an excellent opportunity for planning to enable the delivery of more affordable homes, create better places and increase equality and social justice in Scotland. This is why SFHA gave evidence to the committee on the content of the bill, and we welcome much that is in the report.
“In particular, we welcome proposals for a purpose for planning to be enshrined in the bill, with an aim to create quality places, meet a human right to housing, and achieve climate change targets.
“We also welcome proposals that Simplified Development Zones, which could help deliver more homes, must follow full community consultation and be properly master planned to deliver better places.
“We agree with the proposal for Local Place Plans to be properly resourced and, in particular, for support to be made available to disadvantaged communities to develop plans.
“We are also encouraged by the committee’s call for discussions and proposals for land value capture, which we believe could support increased delivery of homes of all tenures, to be brought forward by the Scottish Government.
“The SFHA and its partners look forward to continuing to work constructively with the Scottish Government, the Local Government and Communities Committee and MSPs of all parties in the continued development of this vital piece of legislation.”