Regional Planning Bill

A

BILL

TO

Strength local and regional cooperation to address modern urban planning challenges, and for connected purposes.

BE IT ENACTED by the King’s Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament, assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows —

Part 1: General Provisions

Chapter 1: Definitions

Section 1: Definitions

(1) For the purpose of this Act, unless stated otherwise, the following terms apply —

(a) “Regional planning requirements” refers to the regional planning objectives, principles and other regional planning requirements;

(b) “Regional planning objectives” refers to prescribed standards in the form of texts or drawings in regional plans which are governed by or can be reconstructed on the basis of area-specific or functional features and which have been finally decided upon by local authorities responsible for regional or sub-regional planning in the individual council; they serve to develop, organise and protect the respective areas;

(c) “Regional planning principles” refers to general statements concerning the development, organisation and protection of areas defined in or in accordance with section 2 as standards to be complied with in subsequent judgements and discretionary decisions;

(d) “Additional regional planning requirements” refers to regional planning objectives in the process of being established, results of formal regional planning procedures of a local authority such as the Regional Impact Assessment Procedures and the opinion of the local authority on regional planning procedures;

(e) “Public authorities” refers to national agencies and agencies of regional, and local authorities, public institutions and foundations.

(f) “Regionally significant plans and measures” refers to plans including the local and regional plans, projects and other measures by means of which land is used or the regional development or function of an area is influenced, including the use of earmarked public funds.

(g) “Regional plans” refers to the regional plans for individual regions and of the local authorities.

(h) “Development axes” refers to geographical spaces that concentrate a significant flow of people and goods both inside and outside.

Part 2: Regional Planning Agencies

Chapter 2: Planning Agencies

Section 2: Establishment of Regional Planning Agencies

(1) For the purposes of this Act, England shall be divided into the regions specified in Schedule 1 and for each such region, there shall be a development agency.

(2) A planning agency established by this section shall be a public body to be known by the name of the region for which it is established with the addition of the words “Planning Agency”.

(3) Any reference in Schedule 1 to a local government or administrative area is to that area as it is for the time being.

Section 3: Governance of the Planning Agencies

(1) A regional planning agency shall consist of not less than 8 and nor more than 15 members appointed by the Secretary of State.

(2) In appointing a person to be a member of a regional planning agency the Secretary of State shall have regard to the desirability of appointing a person who has experience of, and has shown capacity in, some matter relevant to the functions of the agency.

(3) Before appointing a person to be a member of a regional planning agency, the Secretary of State shall consult —

(a) such persons as appear to him to represent local authorities whose areas fall to any extent within the agency’s area,

(b) such persons as appear to him to represent employers in the agency’s area,

(c) such persons as appear to him to represent employees in the agency’s area,

(d) such persons as appear to him to represent the interests of those who live, work or carry on business in rural parts of the agency’s area, and

(e) such other persons as he considers appropriate.

(4) The Secretary of State —

(a) shall designate one of the members of a regional planning agency as the chairman of the agency, and

(b) may designate another of them as the deputy chairman of the agency.

(5) Schedule 2 shall contain further provisions which are to apply.

Section 4: Status of Regional Planning Agencies

A regional development agency shall not be regarded as the servant or agent of the Crown or as enjoying any status, immunity or privilege of the Crown and its property shall not be regarded as the property of, or property held on behalf of, the Crown. Activities

Section 5: Purposes of Regional Planning Agencies

(1) A regional planning agency shall have the following purposes in regard to spatial planning —

(a) to further the economic development and the regeneration of its area,

(b) to promote business efficiency, investment and competitiveness in its area,

(c) to promote employment in its area,

(d) to enhance the development and application of skills relevant to employment in its area, and

(e) to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development in the United Kingdom where it is relevant to its area to do so.

(2) A regional planning agency’s purposes apply as much in relation to the rural parts of its area as in relation to the non-rural parts of its area.

Section 6: Powers of the Regional Planning Agencies

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this Part, a regional planning agency may do anything which it considers expedient for its purposes, or for purposes incidental thereto.

(2) A regional planning agency may only —

(a) give financial assistance,

(b) dispose of land for less than the best consideration which can reasonably be obtained,

(c) form, or acquire an interest in, a body corporate, if the Secretary of State consents, and

(d) carry out the functions, where applicable, det ailed in Parts 3 of this Act.

(3) A regional planning agency may only provide housing by acquiring existing housing accommodation and making it available on a temporary basis for purposes incidental to its purposes.

Section 7: Delegation of functions by Ministers

(1) The Secretary of State may, to such extent and subject to such conditions as they think fit, delegate any eligible function of theirs to a regional planning agency.

(2) A function is eligible for the purposes of subsection (1) if —

(a) it does not consist of a power to make regulations or other instruments of a legislative character or a power to fix fees or charges, and

(b) the Secretary of State considers that it can appropriately be exercised by the regional planning agency concerned.

(3) No delegation under subsection (1) may be made without the agreement of the regional planning agency concerned unless a corresponding delegation is made at the same time to all the other regional planning agencies.

(4) No variation of a delegation under subsection (1) may be made without the agreement of the regional planning agency concerned, unless—

(a) the delegation did not require the agency’s agreement, and

(b) a corresponding variation of every corresponding delegation to another regional planning agency is made at the same time.

(5) A delegation under subsection (1) may be revoked at any time.

Section 8: Strategy of Regional Planning Agencies

(1) A regional planning agency shall —

(a) formulate, and keep under review, a strategy in relation to its purposes, and

(b) have regard to the strategy in exercising its functions.

(2) The Secretary of State may give a regional planning agency guidance and directions in relation to the exercise of its functions under subsection (1), in particular, with respect to —

(a) the matters to be covered by the strategy,

(b) the issues to be taken into account in formulating the strategy,

(c) the strategy to be adopted in relation to any matter, and

(d) the updating of the strategy.

(3) The issues mentioned in subsection (2)(b) include issues relating to any one or more of the following —

(a) the agency’s area, and

(b) the area of any other regional planning agency.

Section 9: Regional and Local Consultation

(1) If the Secretary of State is of the opinion —

(a) that there is a body which is representative of those in a regional planning agency’s area with an interest in its work, and

(b) that the body is suitable to be given the role of the regional chamber for the agency, they may by directions to the agency designate the body as the regional chamber for the agency.

(2) The Secretary of State may by directions require a regional planning agency for which there is a regional chamber under subsection (1)—

(a) to have regard, in the exercise of its functions under section 8(1)(a), to any views expressed by the chamber, and

(b) to consult the chamber in relation to the exercise of such of its functions as may be specified in the directions.

(3) The Secretary of State may give a regional planning agency for which there is no regional chamber under subsection (1) such guidance and directions as they deem fit for the purpose of securing that it carries out appropriate consultation in relation to the exercise of its functions.

Part 3: Regional Planning

Chapter 3: General Regional Planning Provisions

Section 10: Principles of Regional Planning

(1) The principles of regional planning shall be applied in the sense of the overall concept of sustainable regional development.

(2) Regional planning shall be governed by the following principles —

(a) A well-balanced system of settlements and open spaces shall be developed in the entire territory of England, in which —

(i) provision shall be made to maintain a functioning ecosystem in built-up and non-built-up areas; and

(ii) efforts shall be made to establish balanced economic, infrastructural, social, ecological and cultural conditions in the respective regions.

(b) The local settlement structure of the territory as a whole with its large number of well-functioning centres and city regions shall be maintained, in which —

(i) Building activities shall be concentrated in certain areas with a view to establishing a system of functioning central places; and

(ii) the re-use of derelict settlement areas shall be given priority over the use of open spaces.

(c) The large-scale and integrative system of open spaces shall be maintained and improved, in which —

(i) the importance of open spaces for productive land use, the water balance, fauna and flora and for the climate shall be guaranteed or their function restored; and

(ii) provision shall be made for economic and social uses of open spaces by taking into consideration their ecological functions.

(d) The infrastructure shall be harmonised with the system of settlements and open spaces, in which —

(i) the local population shall be provided with basic technical infrastructure installations covering public utilities and disposal facilities for the entire area; and

(ii) social infrastructure facilities shall be concentrated primarily in central places.

(e) Agglomerations shall be established as residential, production and service centres, in which —

(i) the development of settlements shall be governed by the objective of establishing an integrated transport system and making provision for open spaces;

(ii) the attractiveness of public passenger transport shall be enhanced by developing integrated transport systems and establishing functioning interfaces;

(iii) green belts shall be maintained and integrated as elements of a network of open spaces; and

(iv) adverse environmental effects shall be reduced.

(f) Rural areas shall be developed as independent residential and economic areas, in which

(i) a balanced population structure shall be promoted;

(ii) the central places of rural areas shall be supported in their task as promoters of regional development; and

(iii) the ecological functions of the rural areas shall also be maintained with a view to their importance for the entire territory.

(g) In areas where the overall standards of living lag far behind the national average or where this is to be feared (underdeveloped areas), the preconditions for development shall be improved as a matter of priority. The latter mainly include —

(i) sufficient and high-quality training,

(ii) employment opportunities, and

(iii) improvement of environmental conditions and infrastructure facilities.

(h) Provision shall be made for the protection, conservation and development of the natural surroundings and landscape including water bodies and forests, taking into account the requirements of the biotope network. In which —

(i) natural resources, particularly water and soil, shall be used sparingly and carefully; groundwater resources shall be protected,

(ii) any impairment of the ecosystem shall be compensated for. If the land is no longer used on a permanent basis, the productivity of the soil shall be maintained or restored,

(iii) in the protection and development of the ecological functions and uses relating to the countryside, the respective interactions shall also be taken into account,

(iv) provision shall be made for preventive flood protection on the coasts and in the interior of the country, the interior mainly by protecting or restoring meadows, retention areas and areas which are in danger of being flooded, and

(v) provision shall be made for the protection of the public against noise and for air pollution control.

(i) Efforts shall be made to establish a well-balanced economic structure which will be competitive in the long term and offer a variety of adequate job and training opportunities. In which, as far as necessary, —

(i) sufficiently large areas shall be reserved for improving the locational conditions for economic development, infrastructure facilities closely concerned with industry shall be expanded and the attractiveness of the locations enhanced, and

(ii) areas shall also be reserved for the precautionary protection and systematic prospecting and extraction of site-specific raw materials.

(j) Certain areas shall also be reserved and protected for the agricultural sector to develop as an efficient and competitive sector of the economy, cooperating with an efficient and sustainable forestry sector in the protection of natural resources and in the preservation and shaping of the natural surroundings and countryside, in which —

(i) site-specific agriculture shall be protected; sufficiently large areas of land used for agricultural and forestry purposes shall be maintained, and

(ii) efforts shall be made to achieve a balanced ratio of land used for agriculture to land used for forestry within the regions.

(k) The housing requirements of the population shall be taken into account. When areas are established where jobs are to be created, the probable resulting housing needs shall be taken into consideration, encouraging the allocation of these areas to residential areas in a suitable manner.

(l) Easy access between all regions by passenger and goods transport shall be ensured. The prerequisites for transferring traffic to more environmentally compatible means of transport such as rail and inland waterways shall be improved, particularly in areas and corridors with a high traffic density. By allocating and mixing the various land uses, settlement development shall be influenced in such a way that the traffic load is reduced and a higher volume of traffic is avoided.

(m) Historical and cultural relationships and regional affiliations shall be maintained, in which —

(i) the characteristic features and the cultural and natural monuments of evolved cultural landscapes shall be preserved.

(n) Provision shall be made for areas and locations suitable for leisure in natural surroundings and in the countryside and for recreational and sports activities.

(o) Provision shall be made for the reservation of land required for civil and military defence purposes.

(3) Local Authorities may establish additional regional planning principles, in so far as these are not contradictory to paragraph 2; this also applies to principles included in regional plans.

Section 11: Tasks of Regional Planning

(1) The entire territory of England and the regions of which it is made up shall be developed, organised and protected by integrative general regional plans and the harmonising of regionally significant plans and measures. In so doing

(a) differing requirements to be met by the area shall be harmonised and conflicts arising at the respective planning level shall be resolved;

(b) provision shall be made for individual functions of an area and individual land uses.

(2) The overall concept of the task laid down in subsection 1 is that of sustainable regional development which will bring the social and economic demands made on an area into line with its ecological functions and result in a stable order which will be well-balanced on a large scale. In so doing

(a) the right to self-fulfilment within the community and with responsibility to future generations shall be ensured,

(b) the natural resources shall be protected and developed,

(c) the locational prerequisites for economic development shall be created,

(d) Land use possibilities shall be kept open in the long term

(e) the characteristic diversity of individual regions shall be enhanced; and

(f) Similar standards of living shall be established in all regions,

(3) The development, organisation and protection of the individual regions shall match the conditions and requirements of the territory as a whole; the development, organisation and protection of the territory as a whole shall allow for the conditions and requirements of its individual regions (principle of countervailing influence).

Section 12: Regional Planning Requirement Effects

(1) Regional planning objectives shall be observed by public authorities in regionally significant plans and measures. This shall also apply to —

(a) authorisations, plan approvals and other official decisions on the permissibility of regionally significant measures taken by public authorities,

(b) plan approvals and authorisations with the legal effect of official approval of a plan concerning the permissibility of regionally significant measures taken by legal persons or entities under private law.

(2) The principles and other requirements of regional planning are to be observed by public authorities in regionally significant plans and measures in accordance with subsection 1 of this Section when balancing conflicting interests or when using their discretion in accordance with the applicable regulations.

(3) Subsection 1 and Subsection 2 shall apply mutatis mutandis to regionally significant plans and measures of legal persons or entities under law performing public functions if

(a) public authorities have a majority interest in them or,

(b) the plans and measures are mainly financed with public funds.

(4) Authorisations, plan approvals and other official decisions on the permissibility of regionally significant measures taken by legal persons or entities under law shall meet the requirements of regional planning in accordance with the applicable regulations governing such decisions.

Section 13: Special Construction Projects Effects

(1) For regionally significant plans and measures of the competent local, regional and national authorities acting on behalf of the Secretary of State, as well as legal persons or entities under law performing public functions for the Secretary of State in accordance with section 12, whose special public purpose requires a certain site or alignment, the binding effect of the regional planning objectives in accordance with section 12 shall apply only if —

(a) the competent authority or person(s) has been involved in accordance with section 14

(b) the parties involved failed to reach an agreement, and

(c) the authority or person has failed to lodge an objection within two months following notification of the legally binding objective.

(2) If an authority or person(s) in accordance with subsection 1 claims a conflict of public interests with a regional planning objective currently being prepared, which under the conditions of subsection 3 would give the right to object, the planning authority and the authority or person(s) involved shall endeavour to reach a satisfactory solution within three months in cooperation with the regional planning agency, and competent local authorities.

(3) The objection in accordance with subsection 1 shall set aside the binding effect of the regional planning objective on the authority or person objecting if —

(a) it is based on the faulty balancing of interests, or

(b) it is not consistent with the purpose of the project and the project cannot be carried out on any other suitable piece of land.

(4) If a change in the state of affairs calls for a deviation from regional planning objectives, the competent public authority or person responsible in accordance with subsection 1 may, with the consent of the next higher authority, subsequently lodge an objection under the conditions of subsection 3 within a reasonable period of time, but not later than six months after gaining knowledge of the changed state of affairs.

(5) If as a result of this subsequent objection pursuant to subsection 4, the regional plan has to be modified, supplemented or revoked, the competent public authority or person(s) objecting shall bear the accruing costs.

Section 14: General Provisions on Regional Plans

(1) The principles of regional planning shall be put into concrete terms in regional plans in accordance with the overall concept and the principle of countervailing influence pursuant to Section 11 for the respective planning area and for a regular medium-term, in which spatially and sectorally limited plans may be prepared. Objectives of regional planning shall be clearly identified as such in regional plans.

(2) Regional plans should contain specifications concerning the spatial structure, especially with respect to —

(a) the desired settlement structure; this may include

(i) spatial order categories,

(ii) central places,

(iii) special community functions such as growth points and overspill towns,

(iv) settlement developments,

(v) development axes,

(b) the desired open space structure; this may include —

(i) interregional significant open spaces and their protection,

(ii) uses of open space, such as sites designed to safeguard supplies of and systematically search for and extract location-specific raw materials,

(iii) redevelopment and development of spatial functions,

(c) the desired infrastructure locations and routes; these may include —

(i) the traffic infrastructure and installations for the transfer of goods,

(ii) public utility and waste disposal infrastructure.

Stipulations in accordance with paragraph 2, may also establish the need to compensate for, make good or limit unavoidable damage to the ecological balance or the countryside in this area elsewhere.

(3) Regional plans should also contain those stipulations concerning regionally significant plans and measures of public authorities and legal persons and entities under the law in accordance with section 11, subsection 3, that are eligible for incorporation into regional plans and required under subsection 7 of this Section for coordinating claims on land and can be safeguarded by way of objectives or principles of regional planning. In addition to statements included in sector plans of traffic, water protection and emission control legislation, these mainly include —

(a) regionally significant nature protection and countryside conservation requirements and measures in landscape programs and strategic landscape plans in accordance with national conservation legislation; regional plans may also serve as landscape programs and strategic landscape plans,

(b) regionally significant requirements and measures of overall forest plans in accordance with national forestry legislation,

(c) regionally significant requirements and measures of waste management planning in accordance with national waste management legislation,

(4) The stipulations in accordance with paragraphs 2 and 3 may also refer to areas —

(a) scheduled for certain regionally significant functions or uses, thus excluding other regionally significant uses in this area provided that they are inconsistent with the priority functions, uses or objectives of regional planning (priority areas),

(b) where special importance is attached to certain regionally significant functions or uses when balanced with competing regionally significant uses (reserve areas),

(c) suitable for certain regionally significant measures which are to be assessed within the scope of urban development in the relevant legislation and shall be prohibited in another location in the planning area (suitability areas), and

(d) Priority areas with respect to regionally significant uses may be established to have the simultaneous effect of suitability areas for regionally significant measures in accordance with paragraph 3.

(5) Public authorities and legal persons or entities under the competent legislation shall be involved in the process of preparing regional planning objectives for which the obligation of compliance under Section 11 is to be established.

(6) It may be stipulated that the public has to be involved or given the opportunity to participate in the process of preparing regional plans.

(7) A statement of reasons shall be added to the regional plans.

Section 15: Plan Maintenance

(1) In order to ensure plan maintenance, provisions may be made by the Secretary of State through regulations via secondary legislation for the relevance of a violation of the procedural and formal requirements applying to regional plans to be made contingent on the observance of a time limit for claims not exceeding a year after publication of the regional plan.

(2) The relevance of a violation of procedural and formal requirements as well as of faults in assessment can be excluded particularly in the case of —

(a) insufficient substantiation of the regional plan, and

(b) faults in the assessment that were neither obvious nor of any influence on the result of the assessment.

(3) In the case of faults in the assessment that are not irrelevant in accordance with paragraph 2, point 2, and that can be remedied through a supplementary procedure, it can be excluded that they will result in invalidity of the plan, the consequence being that the plan will have no binding effects until such faults have been remedied.

(4) Regulations set under this section shall be subject to negative procedure.

Section 16: Deviations from Objectives

(1) Deviation from a regional planning objective shall be possible under a special procedure detailed by the Secretary of State through regulations set via secondary legislation if the deviation is justifiable from the point of view of regional planning and if the planning essentials are not affected.

(2) Regulations may be set via secondary legislation by the Secretary of State for the entitlement to submit such applications to rest primarily with the public authorities and the relevant individuals as well as with those local authorities that are obliged to comply with the objective of regional planning.

(3) Regulations set under this section shall be subject to negative procedure.

Section 17: Realisation and Cooperation of Regional Plans

(1) The authorities responsible for regional planning at regional and local levels shall be required to work towards the implementation of the regional plans, in which cooperation shall be furthered between the public authorities and persons or entities responsible for the realisation of regional planning.

(2) Cooperation between local authorities shall be supported by the competent regional planning agency in order to promote developments in individual regions, through available and necessary means.

(3) The authorities shall be required to enact contractual agreements which shall be concluded for the preparation and realisation of the regional plans developed, in which —

(a) rules shall be laid down with regard to the contents and scope of their obligation to notify and inform each relevant authority of intended plans and measures with significant regional effects as well as with regard to the participation of the authorities responsible for regional planning in such harmonisation.

Section 18: Impact Assessment

(1) Regionally significant plans and measures shall be harmonized with each other as well as coordinated with the requirements of regional policy under a special procedure (regional impact assessment procedure). The regional impact assessment procedure assesses

(a) whether regionally significant plans or measures are in accordance with the requirements of regional policy,

(b) in which way regionally significant plans and measures can be harmonised with each other or carried out under the provisions of regional policy (regional impact assessment).

(2) The regional impact assessment procedure shall assess the regionally significant impact of the plan or measure on the issues mentioned in the principles of this Act taking supralocal criteria into consideration.

(3) The assessment in accordance with this Section shall include an evaluation of the locational or route alternatives introduced by the public body that is responsible for the plan or measure.

(4) A regional impact assessment procedure can be waived if the regional impact of the plan or measure has already been sufficiently assessed on other grounds within the regional planning procedure; this shall apply, in particular, if the plan or measure

(a) corresponds to or conflicts with the objectives of regional planning or

(b) corresponds to or conflicts with the statements or determinations of a land-use plan or a binding construction plan and adapted to the objectives of regional planning, and if the permissibility of that plan or measure is not governed by a plan approval procedure or other procedure with the legal effects of official approval of plans for regionally significant projects or

(c) has been determined in another statutory harmonisation procedure with the participation of the authority responsible for regional planning at a regional level.

(5) Provisions shall be made regarding the gathering of the necessary information on the plan or measure, while the procedural records shall be confined to that information which is necessary to permit an assessment of the regionally significant effects of the project.

(6) The Secretary of State shall set provisions through regulations via secondary legislation for the decision regarding the initiation of a regional impact assessment procedure to be made in consultation with the competent authority or person.

(7) In the case of military defence plans and measures with regional effects the competent Secretary of State or the agencies it appoints shall decide about the type and scope of the information required for the plan or measure; in the case of civil defence plans and measures with regional effects, the competent authority shall make that decision.

(8) Provisions can be made at the discretion of the competent authorities for the participation of the public and local communities in carrying out a regional impact assessment procedure. In the case of regionally significant plans and measures, the competent authorities therein shall decide whether and to what extent the public will participate.

(9) A decision about the necessity for a regional impact assessment procedure shall be made within a period of time not exceeding 4 weeks after submission of the required documents. The regional impact assessment procedure shall be concluded within a period of time not exceeding 6 months after receipt of the complete documents.

Part 4: Final Provisions

Chapter 4: Final Provisions

Section 19: Funding

(1) The Secretary of State shall appropriate the necessary funds for the Regional Planning Agencies in consultation with local and regional authorities.

(2) Initial funds for the Regional Planning Agencies shall be established in accordance with Section 21 of this Act.

Section 20: Repeals

(1) The following Act is hereby repealed —

(a) Public Bodies Act 2011

Section 21: Extent, Commencement and Short Title

(1) This Act extends to England.

(2) The provisions of this Act shall come into force six months after this Act is passed, and has received Royal Assent.

(3) This Act may be cited as the Regional Planning Act.

SCHEDULE 1: Regions

SCHEDULE 2: Constitution of Agencies

Section 1: Membership

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this paragraph, a member of a regional development agency shall hold and vacate office in accordance with the terms of his appointment and shall, on ceasing to be a member, be eligible for re-appointment.

(2) A member of a regional planning agency may at any time resign his office by giving notice to the Secretary of State.

(3) The Secretary of State may remove a member of a regional planning agency from that office if they are satisfied—

(a) that the member has been absent from meetings of the agency for a period of more than 3 months without the permission of the agency,

(b) that the member has been adjudged bankrupt, that his estate has been sequestrated or that he has made a composition or arrangement with, or granted a trust deed for, his creditors, or

(c) that the member is unable or unfit to carry out the functions of a member.

Section 2: Chairman and deputy chairman

(1) A person designated as chairman or deputy chairman of a regional planning agency shall hold office as such in accordance with the terms of their appointment unless and until—

(a) he resigns that office by giving notice to the Secretary of State, or

(b) he ceases to be a member, and shall, on ceasing to be chairman or deputy chairman, be eligible for further designation at any time when he is a member.

Referenced and Inspired Legislation:

Regional Development Agencies Act 1988

Public Bodies Act 2011

This Bill was submitted by u/Waffel-lol Spokesperson for Home Affairs and Justice, Business, Innovation and Trade, and Energy and Net-Zero, on behalf of the Liberal Democrats

Opening Speech:

It is known that comparatively to many countries, the United Kingdom currently has a poor planning framework which has impacted urban development and even housing construction. This bill introduces a new regional planning system based on successive models seen in our counterpart economies and renews the former regional planning attitude the United Kingdom used to have. Upon the original abolition of such regional planning systems, In March 2011, the all-party Commons Communities and Local Government committee published its report on the implications of the abolition of the RSS system. Where It stated that "The intended abolition of regional spatial planning strategies leaves a vacuum at the heart of the English planning system which could have profound social, economic and environmental consequences set to last for many years” and they were very much correct in their assessment over a decade later. With the Regional Development Offices Act already rolling back partially the 2010/2011 reforms made by the previous Government on the matter, this bill concludes this in bringing back strong and effective regional planning, with a brand new model for the modern challenges of urban development. Part 2 of this bill creates the Regional Planning Agencies, and the provisions these bodies act under are needed to help the organisation and facilitate such cooperation. It is in schedule 1 where the boundaries for these agencies in England are clarified in further detail. Part 3 of this bill, handles the operations and activities of the Regional agencies and how they interact with local authorities for the devising of regional plans. This bill works to bring together existing local authorities and their planning agencies to address situations that transcends local boundaries, bleeding into needing greater regional cooperation and coordination. Whilst the Liberal Democrats are strong champions of local communities, we also understand the necessity of facilitating cross-region understanding and effort to address the great urban challenges such as the effects of climate change, wide population and connectivity disparities. As this term comes to an end, we have made sure to give a duration of 6 months for this bill to take effect in preparing and setting up such offices whereby the next term have ample time to act on the secondary legislation instruments available within this bill and handle matters of funding.

This division will end at 10pm on the 13th September