A Question of Balance

Article

This paper assesses the Barker Review of Land Use Planning, exploring the role of planning in urban growth. It finds a case for managed reviews to green belts. But the jury is out on reforming the 'town centre first' approach, and proposals for planning major infrastructure need further work.

The Barker Review of Land Use Planning has been widely attacked as bad for cities: loosening the green belt, damaging town centres and undermining local democracy. But others felt the Review should have gone a lot further. Who is right?

This paper assesses Barker, exploring the role of planning in urban growth. It finds a case for managed reviews to green belts. But the jury is out on reforming the 'town centre first' approach, and proposals for planning major infrastructure need further work.

The forthcoming Planning White Paper should take forward Barker's more sensible proposals. But the Government must tread carefully, improving local planners' capacity before it introduces any major reforms.

Centre for Cities has re-launched as an independent think tank. You can visit them online at http://www.centreforcities.org.

Related items

  1. A close-up photo of a house flying an England flag from an upstairs window

    Reclaiming Britain: The nation against ethno-nationalism

    How can progressives respond to the increasing ethnonationalist narratives of the political right?
  2. Street scene in financial district, London

    Rule of the market: How to lower UK borrowing costs

    The UK is paying a premium on its borrowing costs that ‘economic fundamentals’, such as the sustainability of its public finances, cannot fully explain. 
  3. A mother and child from behind looking out of a window

    Restoring security: Understanding the effects of removing the two-child limit across the UK

    The government’s decision to lift the two-child limit marks one of the most significant changes to the social security system in a decade.