The British Property Federation (BPF) has welcomed a new review of the planning system recently announced by communities’ secretary Hazel Blears.

The review entitled ‘Planning Applications: a faster and more responsive system’ will examine what can disrupt the process of an application from when it is submitted up to and beyond when a decision is made. It will be headed by Joanna Killian, chief executive of Essex County Council, and David Pretty, former chief executive of Barratt Developments. Ministers admitted that slow and cumbersome parts of the planning process need to be tackled and the BPF has long lobbied for a more efficient and nationally aligned system.

Liz Peace CBE, chief executive of the BPF, said: “The BPF warmly welcomes this review, and it is encouraging to see that the Government acknowledges there are elements of the application process which are cumbersome and bureaucratic. Hopefully, the review will make some sensible recommendations to help create a thorough but quick process for planning applications to be determined.”