Germanshepherdsmum
Another thing that sounds good but will take years to happen. There is also the question of whether local authorities have the space in their offices to accommodate them.
Local authorities are already required to determine planning applications within three months unless the applicant agrees an extension, or the applicant can appeal. There are a number of statutory consultees whose views must be asked and taken into account - highway and drainage authorities, to name but two. This actually takes time and no amount of additional planners can shorten that vital process. However additional government planning inspectors could significantly shorten the time that it takes for an appeal to be determined so that is what the government should focus on imo, as well as additional local authority planning lawyers to negotiate agreements for provision of affordable housing, infrastructure etc related to the development and financial contributions to area-wide infrastructure projects. That has to be done before the planning permission can be issued and causes huge delays. The government is not, in my view, focusing on the matters which really delay development. My experience of trying to negotiate these agreements with local authority lawyers is that it is like wading through treacle. The one memorable exception I experienced was when Cambridge City Council hired some Aussie lawyers - really brilliant, got the job done.
You can be reassured on the office accommodation issue, because the vast majority of Local Authorities now work in an agile way, as a result of financial cuts many have downsized their accommodation, upgraded their phone systems, and staff work in the office on a so many days per week basis, with direct lines to their home from the LA switchboard. I worked with quite a few local authorities before I retired, and they had all gone down the same route.
