Localism Act is huge growth opportunity, says GVA
The Birmingham office of property consultancy GVA has told Insider that new localism legislation will encourage the use of new funding sources and become "a real driver for regional growth".
The Localism Act, which gained royal assent this week, aims to give more power to regional authorities in planning and decision-making.
Stephen Hollowood, senior director and head of public sector at GVA Birmingham, said the act would "strengthen local democracy and accountability".
"Within the West Midlands region, the increased delegation of powers should enable councils to be more innovative with regard to the creation of bespoke policy solutions that can assist with stimulating the local economy," he said.
"The provisions of the Localism Act will encourage the use of new sources of funding, including the community infrastructure levy and business rates retention, which when combined with enterprise zone status should become real drivers for regional economic growth."
But Hollowood added that there were still matters for the government to address, including transitional arrangements in terms of planning.
He said: "The Localism Act has probably introduced the most significant changes to the planning system since 1947 and as the NPPF moves forward there remains uncertainty around further planning reform. This is potentially very damaging to investor and developer confidence. Clarity of the government’s intentions is needed to ease that uncertainty."
