Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are planning to require local authorities to conduct planning and conservation processes speedily and within set timeframes.

The performance of local planning authorities in deciding all types of applications for planning permission is crucial to achieving our objective of building the homes this country needs.

That is why we continuously monitor the performance of local planning authorities in determining planning applications for major and non-major development, through our designation regime.

Local planning authorities are required to determine more than 60 per cent of major applications and 70 per cent of non-major applications within the statutory timescales. If a local planning authority falls below this figure within a defined 24 month period then they risk being designated as under-performing.

Should an authority be designated as under-performing, applicants will have the option of submitting applications directly to the Planning Inspectorate (who act on behalf of the Secretary of State) for determination.