Burnham and the concern about powers he didn't ask for

ANDY Burnham will have the power to overturn decisions by local councils over controversial developments under new proposals.

- JOSEPH TIMAN, NICK JACKSON, DECLAN CAREY AND CHARLOTTE HALL

The Greater Manchester mayor says he did not ask for these new powers and, privately, council sources doubt that he will use them. However, the government has now confirmed that it plans to empower all mayors to 'call in' planning applications.

It comes after changes to the planning system were unveiled, sparking fears that local councillors will have less of a say over what gets built. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has vowed that the reforms will not remove local democratic power from councils.

But under the new English Devolution White Paper which she unveiled on Monday, decisions by local planning committees could be overturned by the mayor if he disagrees with them.

The planning reforms announced earlier in December also give planning officers the power to bypass local councillors and approve plans that comply with locally-agreed development plans. Ultimately, the government hopes these changes will speed up the planning process and help build the 1.5m homes Labour promised.

In an effort to meet those targets, the government has also introduced new local targets for housebuilding which some critics warn could mean more green belt land will have to be built on.

However, the new targets will not apply to most of Greater Manchester.

That's because nine of the 10 councils in the city region have signed up to a joint plan which sets out where 165,000 new homes will be built across Greater Manchester over the next 15 years. The Places for Everyone plan, which replaced the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework when Stockport pulled out in late 2020, was formally approved this year, but now faces a High Court challenge.

Speaking to the M.E.N. after the planning reforms were announced, Mr Burnham said that Greater Manchester is in a 'stronger position' than other areas because of the plan which means that the government is less likely to intervene on local planning decisions.