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As ministers battle to meet their 1.5m housing target, they believe local plans will ‘play an essential role'.That explains why the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is so bullish on enforcing a statutory deadline of December for councils to submit their local plans.MHCLG said it expected local authorities to work towards the adoption of an up-to-date local plan as soon as possible and has threatened action against those that ignore its edict.A Whitehall source said: ‘This government is committed to taking tough action to support the delivery of ambitious, up-to-date plans and will not hesitate to take action to ensure they are put in place.'But an increasing number of councils think the administrative burden of meeting this deadline is too great and the Government has been urged to exempt a number of local authorities.Some councils have already said they will only work towards producing plans around MHCLG's new system, which has a longer 30-month deadline for submission.Vice chair of the Local Government Association's inclusive growth committee Cllr Carl Cashman said that ‘in instances where councils consider it unlikely that they will meet' the deadline they were ‘responding rationally by refocusing resources on a new-style local plan'.He said: ‘The Government should recognise the impact of its deadline, provide certainty for those rushing to the finish line and work with all councils to find an approach that works best locally.'Cashman urged ministers to exempt councils from meeting the December deadline ‘where a clear case can be made'. However, officers at New Forest DC warned there was ‘little certainty around the threshold that must be met to justify such a decision or the duration of any extension that might be granted'. Ahead of a decision on moving away from the current local plan programme, officers advised councillors there is ‘significant doubt as to whether the continued progression of the local plan would represent the most effective and sustainable course of action over the longer term'.New Forest DC's portfolio holder for planning and economy Cllr Derek Tipp said the potential move ‘reflects the reality that the planning system has changed around us, and we must adapt our approach accordingly to secure the best outcome for our communities'.Writing in The MJ, East Hampshire DC's chief executive Dawn Adey said her council would not ‘meet this imposed deadline'. Adey warned that planning ‘feels increasingly unstable and, in some cases, at risk of becoming obsolete before plans are even adopted' and believes ‘more and more councils' will come to the same decision to switch to the new system ahead of December, which ‘should send a very clear message to decision makers'.Another local authority that has confirmed it will miss December's deadline as it focuses on the new local plan process is Dorset Council.Dorset Council's cabinet member for planning Cllr Shane Bartlett said that despite spending ‘several years' preparing its local plan ahead of the December deadline ‘we now find that the situation has changed through no fault of our own' due to Government changes to the system.He added: ‘Housing requirements increased significantly, new plan-making requirements were introduced, and councils were given a deadline that has become increasingly difficult if not impossible to achieve while still producing a local plan that can pass independent examination.'A spokesperson for Dorset Council said its decision to switch to the new local plan system had received cross-party support and had been ‘subject to the council's normal governance processes, including legal oversight'.They added: ‘Like a number of other authorities facing the same challenge, we have been left with little realistic choice but to move to the new system.'Test Valley BC approved its switch to the new system amid concerns that if a plan was submitted by the end of the year ‘speculative applications' could gain permission before it was assessed by inspectors. Its cabinet member for planning Cllr Phil Bundy said submitting a local plan by December ‘would be utterly pointless'.With the Government having backtracked on reorganisation this week, many in the sector will be hoping for yet another U-turn.

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POLICY AND POLITICS

Deadlock over December deadline

By Joe Lepper | 08 September 2026

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