Mayor of the West of England, Helen Godwin, has welcomed new devolution powers that will help her get homes built where they are needed most.<\/p>\n
Under proposals, to be published next week, elected mayors will be able to take over key planning applications which impact on local growth and direct a council to take it forward or refuse it.<\/p>\n
The move will bring Godwin and other mayors in line with powers already enjoyed by the Mayor of London and which have been used effectively to boost housebuilding in the capital to benefit local communities.<\/p>\n
The move will affect schemes with more than 150 homes, more than 15,000 square metres of commercial space, or any building 30m or taller.<\/p>\n
Mayors will also be able to grant up-front permission for development so that building can begin without a developer having to apply.<\/p>\n
It is the latest in a series of new devolution powers being handed down from Westminster to the West of England and comes after years of lobbying by politicians and business leaders in the region for it the enjoy similar powers to those that have driven economic growth in Greater Manchester and the West Midlands.<\/p>\n
Mayor Godwin described the new announcement as \u201canother exciting step forward\u201d for the region,<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving more influence over how national housing funding is spent will help us get new homes built where they\u2019re needed most – together with the transport and services that local communities deserve,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
“More control over how we tackle the housing crisis in our region can turbo-charge the work we are already doing together, including with Homes England.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is great news for people across the West of England who are waiting for social housing and saving to get onto the property ladder. Like our local councils, we will be looking closely at the detailed proposals.<\/p>\n
“Call-in powers have been used in the capital by the Mayor of the London for many years, and it’s right that our region is fast catching up.<\/p>\n
\u201cMindful of this responsibility, my approach, now and in the future, remains the same: carefully considering all planning applications at the appropriate stage, looking at all the evidence.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Elected mayor will be able to take over key planning applications which impact on local growth<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":272345,"featured_media":45464,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[120821,120782,128805,136545],"coauthors":[137101],"class_list":["post-45463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-construction","category-economy","category-infrastructure","category-local-government","tag-bristol-and-bath","tag-featured-story","tag-south-west","tag-top-story"],"yoast_head":"\n