The reforms, which were amended on numerous occasions before ultimately being passed on 20th June 2019, will go forward for Royal Assent in due course.

The Bill was originally introduced by Scottish Government to 'strengthen its contribution to inclusive growth, housing and infrastructure delivery and empowering communities'.

Alastair Wood, Head of Savills Planning Team in Scotland said: 'The legislation brings forward the ability for communities to input into Local Place Plans', with reference to issues such as housing, open space and community facilities, and in that sense it does what it set out to do. Planning authorities will be legally required to take these into account, and developers will need to find practical solutions in order to get projects out of the ground.'

'Land Value Capture' was one of the more contentious issues not been taken forward as part of the Bill. Similarly, opposition members will be disappointed that future planning decisions will not be under threat of proposed 'third party right of appeal' by communities, a reform which was not taken forward as part of the Bill.

Planning minister Kevin Stewart said the Bill would give local authorities more powers, and 'put sustainable development at the heart of the system'. He said: 'The bill is a radical new way forward for planning in Scotland. There is now more scope for local planning to influence regional and national plans, and we expect to see more collaboration where people and local authorities across Scotland work closely together for all our benefit.'

Tory planning spokesman Graham Simpson said the Bill 'can deliver growth across Scotland that is greener and includes communities in the decisions that affect them', whilst Labour's Alex Rowley said the bill was 'a shameful missed opportunity' and 'won't tackle the big problems we face as a country'. Green MSP Andy Wightman said the bill was 'deeply disappointing' and 'a new era of SNP centralisation'.

For more information about the Scottish Planning Bill click here

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Savills plc published this content on 21 June 2019 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 21 June 2019 15:44:04 UTC