Property prices continue to climb - but not in Wales and Scotland | Money | The Independent

Property prices continue to climb - but not in Wales and Scotland | Money | The Independent:





Wales has the lowest annual income of any UK region



Diawledig



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In Print: Planning for States and Nation-States in the U.S. and Europe - Urban Land Magazine

In Print: Planning for States and Nation-States in the U.S. and Europe - Urban Land Magazine

Section 106 charges to be scrapped for smaller schemes | Construction News | The Construction Index

Section 106 charges to be scrapped for smaller schemes | Construction News | The Construction Index: "It is claimed that a number of building projects have been rendered unviable by councils applying exorbitant Section 106 charges, such as a £32,000 charge that would be required to build a self-build two-storey three-bedroom house in the New Forest,"



Or £30,000 in the Snowdonia National Park, even for a terraced house!



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Calls for Wales to follow Lake District moves with restrictions on second homes - Wales Online

Calls for Wales to follow Lake District moves with restrictions on second homes - Wales Online: "A spokesman for the Welsh Government, which runs planning policy here, said: “The system is about the use and development of land and does not distinguish between individual applicants or users.

“It is not equipped to monitor who lives in houses nor for how long they reside there, which would make the enforcement of any attempt to regulate second homes through the planning system extremely difficult.”"



Tell that to the Planning Inspectorate



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Redrow profits up 107% - Wales Online

Redrow profits up 107% - Wales Online:



Thanks to planning "policies of misery" none of these big builders show any interest in Welsh areas south of Bangor or north of the Valleys, hundreds of small builders have gone bust thanks to losses caused by S106 madness, that means the rural parts of Wales will suffer greatly but of course that is nothing new for us is it?



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Green-belt housing doubles in a year - Telegraph

Green-belt housing doubles in a year - Telegraph:

Dear Mr Owen,

Thank you for your email of 3 July to the Planning Minister, Nick Boles, about development in the countryside. The Minister was grateful for your positive views and has asked me to reply.

Whilst this Government does not set top-down housing targets, or ask local authorities to build more homes than they need, it has been equally clear in the National Planning Policy Framework that councils need to plan to meet the full needs of their communities for all types of housing in their area. The Framework therefore promotes a positive approach to development, which makes clear that development which is sustainable should go ahead without delay.

Through the Growth and Infrastructure Act, the Government has also introduced practical planning reforms, aimed at further improving processes and removing unnecessary bureaucracy. They include measures to ensure that councils meet minimum performance standards for deciding applications – helping to avoid delays that are unfair to both local residents and applicants.

The Government certainly does not want to see more open land developed than is necessary, but we have a simple choice. We can decide to ignore the misery of young families forced to grow up in flats with no outside space, and of working men and women in their twenties and thirties who have to live with their parents or share bedrooms with friends. Or we can accept that we are going to have to build on some previously undeveloped land and resolve that we will make these decisions locally. We should also keep the amount of development needed in perspective: 8.9% of England is built up, compared to 40% being covered by protective designations.

Thank you, once again, for writing.

Yours sincerely,

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New blow for Welsh language communities from European courts - Wales Online

New blow for Welsh language communities from European courts - Wales Online:

"Planning policies aimed at protecting the Welsh language have received a blow as a European court ruling appeared to make it more difficult for authorities to implement them.

The ruling comes as two campaign groups expressed concern at what they see as the lack of protection afforded by the Welsh Government to the language.

A judgement issued by the European Court of Justice in a case brought against the Flemish region of Belgium concluded that a stipulation that property must be sold to local people was an infringement of freedom.

It said: “Such a measure may ... discourage residents of one member state from making investments in immovable property in other member states, and thus constitutes a restriction on the free movement of capital.”

Gwynedd property consultant Evan Owen said: “This ruling confirms that authorities which try to stop people buying property on affordability or language grounds are acting unlawfully."

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