Planning bill passed by Commons

The House of Commons passed the planning bill this week, voting 280 to 198 in favour of the new regulations.

Some Labour rebels voted for the bill, after the government made some concessions, but others and campaign groups remain unconvinced by the plans.

According to the Green party's principle speaker Caroline Lucas, the proposals mean "undermining democracy in favour of an increasingly centralised and authoritarian government".

But Gillian Charlesworth, director of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, says there is a "clear need" to improve and speed up decision making on major infrastructure projects.

She believes a failure to do this will lead to "major risks" in much-needed investment.

The planning bill has been designed to speed up projects such as nuclear power stations, windfarms and airport terminals.

It proposes to draw up standard templates, setting out in advance the specifications and requirements for each type of project.

The bill will now be considered by the House of Lords.

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