Overview 

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill 2025 (“the Bill”), hailed by labour as central to the government’s plan to get Britain building again and deliver economic growth, was introduced to parliament on 11 March 2025. The Bill, aims to assist the construction of 1.5 million new homes over the next five years, and expedite decisions on 150 major infrastructure projects during the current parliament. 

This insight will explore the key provisions included in the Bill and aims to give an understanding of how these changes will particularly affect our clients in the delivery of new developments. 

Key provisions in the Bill:

Infrastructure reforms  

Throughout part 1 of the Bill, the key focus is on accelerating and simplifying the approval process and delivery of infrastructure projects on a national scale. To simplify approval for large projects, the Bill introduces a faster review of national policy statements, new powers to bypass development consent for specific projects, and an improved consultation process which should result in an efficient decision-making process.  

The proposed changes to accelerate the electricity infrastructure include faster grid connection processes, support for long duration electricity storage, and the use of forestry land to allow for renewable energy. 

To improve transport infrastructure, the Bill simplifies approvals for transport projects, seeks to create faster approval processes for highway works, proposes a streamlined process for transport procedures, and introduces a requirement for electric vehicle charging points in all new developments. 

Planning Reforms  

Included in part 2 of the Bill are several changes to the planning system, which aim to increase and create efficiency in regard to decision-making.

Some of the notable changes include:

• Increased planning fees for local authorities 

The Bill introduces provisions which will allow local authorities to increase planning application fees, and also to determine their own costs associated with such applications. This will allow local planning authorities to have more resources, which in turn is intended to make local planning authorities’ decision making quicker and more efficient. However, it is required that planning fees not exceed the cost to local planning authorities to determine the application in question, and the fee income must be retained for spending on the authority's relevant planning function. 

• Mandated training for committee members 

Under the Bill, committee members will be required to undergo mandatory training before they can take planning decisions to improve the consistency and quality of such decisions. 

• Delegation of planning decisions  

A key reform of the Bill will introduce a national scheme of delegation that will set out which planning functions should be delegated to planning officers for decision, and which should go to either a committee to subcommittee instead. This reform is intended to reduce any unwarranted delays for applicants, whilst also providing great consistency and certainty across the UK as to who is responsible for planning decisions. 

Development and nature recovery 

Throughout part 3 of the Bill, the emphasis is on balancing the increase of development with the need to ensure environmental sustainability, namely through the introduction of Environmental delivery plans (EDPs) and a Nature restoration levy. These proposed changes are described in more detail as follows: 

• Environmental delivery plans 

The Bill enforces the mandatory creation of EDPs, which will provide an overview of the environmental features, impacts and conservation measures which are required for new developments. Through the introduction of EDPs, developers will likely need to demonstrate how their proposed developments will align with such EDPs in order to secure planning permission. 

• Nature restoration levy 

The nature restoration levy has been introduced, which requires all developers to pay a financial contribution to environmental restoration efforts. Whilst the specific amount will be dependent on each development, this levy will be a mandatory requirement to ensure sustainability and consideration of the environmental impact across all new sites. 

Reforms on compulsory purchase 

Part 4 of the Bill introduces significant reforms to compulsory purchase powers and process in the UK. The key aim is to expedite infrastructure development and create a simpler process for land acquisition, which will enable authorities to make greater use of their compulsory purchase powers. For registered providers, these changes could allow a more efficient process for land acquisition. The key reforms include: 

• Electronic service of notices 
• More delegation of decisions 
• Quicker vesting of land/properties 
• Powers for acquiring authorities to confirm compulsory purchase orders which include modifications 
• Home loss payments 

Commencement and transitional provision  

s96 of part 6 sets out the commencement dates and transitional provisions confirming when the provisions in the Act will come into force. The provisions are extensive, and so it is worth keeping an eye on exactly when the notable features of the Bill will come into legal effect. 

Importantly for registered providers, s44 of part 2, which allows for local authorities to charge increased fees for planning applications, can come into force on such day as the Secretary of State may by regulations appoint, on the basis that it comes into force on the day which the Act is passed (so far as it confers power to make regulations). 

In summary 

The Planning and Infrastructure Bill aims to bring major changes to the way in which planning and development will work across the UK. For registered providers, there will be new opportunities to speed up approvals and access land, however, the new financial responsibilities introduced will require added attention. 

Across the Bill there is a strong focus on sustainability. For housing providers, there is an emphasis to stay engaged with the changes made to deliver the promise of 1.5 million new homes, whilst now also meeting the updated regulatory and environmental standards. 

If you have any queries around what is discussed in this insight and the potential impact on your organisation, please speak to our planning experts, Suzanne Smith and Jennifer Eng to find out more about how Capsticks can help. 

How Capsticks can help 

Our Housing & Regeneration team, one of the largest in the country, advises on all types of development transactions from housing development and stock rationalisations to plot sales and general asset management work. We are experts on all aspects of planning law including s106 agreements, CIL advice, planning appeals, Compulsory Purchase Orders and all general planning law matters. 

If you have any queries around what's discussed in this insight, and the impact on your organisation, please speak to Suzanne Smith, Jennifer Eng or any of your contacts at Capsticks, to find out more about how we can help.