<p><span>The planning system is presenting a “very mixed” picture in its effectiveness on a local level, Simon Gallagher, director of planning for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, said today (September 17).</span></p> <p><span>Speaking at the HBF Planning Conference in Birmingham, Gallagher said that MHCLG had been “doing a lot of listening” to the industry’s experiences of the National Planning Policy Framework that it refreshed last year.</span></p> <p><span>Although it had heard positive accounts of new schemes coming forward and more plans being put in place since the changes, MHCLG had also been told of local authorities offering poor customer service and “cases where a lot of red tape is tying up permissions,” Gallagher said.</span></p> <p><span>“The overall story here is that the core development management system isn’t delivering in local government. There is a very mixed story on planning.”</span></p> <p><span>While acknowledging that improvement was needed, Gallagher cautioned against hasty change when planning policies were still being brought forward.</span></p> <p><span>He highlighted three areas MHCLG was addressing, firstly stressing the importance of the upcoming Housing Delivery Test results – an annual measurement of local authorities’ housing delivery – which would show local authorities “the consequences of not creating a good environment for …