The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Housing and Planning launched an inquiry into England’s developer contributions systems. The APPG sought evidence about the Government’s proposed Infrastructure Levy and explored proposals to improve existing Section 106 (S106) and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) mechanisms. The inquiry aims to recommend improvements to our planning system.
The Housing Forum very much welcomes the APPG’s efforts to look at improvements to the current system of developer contributions via S106 and CIL. Our members come from across the housing sector – including housebuilders, housing associations and local authorities. We have serious concerns about the deliverability of the proposed infrastructure levy, and do not think it is viable to take it forward without cross-party support. The current system does work and generates cross-subsidy for a significant amount of Affordable Housing, especially in the areas where it is most-needed. There are ways in which it could be improved, and we are keen to support the APPG with developing measures that can do this.
The system should be flexible and market-sensitive. It should also:
- Provide early certainty for developers so the contributions can be factored into land prices, ensuring that the costs of infrastructure are ultimately borne out of land values.
- Provide as much funding as possible for infrastructure, and for Affordable Housing in areas where it is most needed.
- Ensure that schemes remain viable.
- Collect contributions at the right time to deliver the required infrastructure.
- Be transparent over what financial contributions are being spent on.
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