Planning Reform - next steps

Next Steps

Planning plays an important role in delivering sustainable economic growth and the Scottish Government wishes to see the planning system fulfil its potential in facilitating development of the right quality in the right place. This statement sets out our direction and specific actions to accelerate the reform of the planning system in Scotland so that it plays its full part in supporting economic recovery.

The emphasis is on culture change although legislative proposals will be brought forward where necessary to ensure consistent implementation of best practice. In any changes to legislation, existing planning powers will allow us to make some changes by secondary legislation, while some changes will require primary legislation using, for example, the Better Regulation Bill. The Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 also allows changes to be made to primary legislation, but within specified parameters. Depending on the circumstances, we may consider bringing forward a planning bill if that is needed to secure important and practical legislative changes.

The list of documents published today is set out in the attached table and we will announce our final conclusions in late summer. To inform these decisions, the next 6 months will see an intensive programme of engagement across Scotland, talking with stakeholders and carrying out a range of pilots to identify and establish best practice in efficient delivery of good quality development.

Table