On 23 April, a four-week consultation closes on draft regulations and statutory guidance for the national scheme of delegation of planning functions in England. The ramifications are wide ranging, not only for members and officers of planning authorities but also for parish councils, applicants and the general public.
The consultation is happening during the pre-election period for many councils. The Government might say that the principle of a national scheme has already been decided in the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 and that the present consultation is merely giving effect to the decisions taken following the ‘technical consultation' on reform of planning committees which ran from May to July 2025. It has taken eight months for the Government to share its conclusions but only four weeks have been allowed local government to see how they are translated into legislation which will fundamentally alter how planning decisions are taken in future, changing decades of local practice.
