London Stock Exchange: "Green belt vow in planning shake-up"

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"The Government has insisted that the green belt will remain protected under long-awaited reforms to the planning system.

"Planning minister Greg Clark said protection of the green belt and putting high streets and town centres first are national requirements which protect everyone."

Sunday Telegraph: "Radical planning powers are to be unveiled by ministers"

Link to Sunday Telegraph

"The planning framework will be published on Tuesday by ministers who want a new age of 'pro-growth' planning. It was described by one Whitehall source last night as 'the most radical business deregulation there has ever been'.

"Meanwhile, new official figures analysed by The Sunday Telegraph show that two million homes are expected to be built by 2020, to meet demand fuelled by a massive population rise.

"... London itself would have a 'second Docklands' development in the west of the city, said High-Speed-Two chief engineer Prof Andrew McNaughton."

The Independent: "'Visit Britain' could soon become a much harder sell"

Link to The Independent

"... George Osborne – and let us be clear, it is Mr Osborne who is driving the policy, not the man ostensibly in charge of planning, the Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles – is sweeping away [protection of the countryside] and replacing it with nothing.

"And it's not only in PPS7. It's also in Planning Policy Statement 4, paragraph 10: the Government's aim is to achieve:

'inclusive and locally distinctive rural communities, whilst continuing to protect the open countryside for the benefit of all.' 

That's being swept away as well."

The Guardian: "Roger Tichborne, blogs at Barnet Eye: 'Crime is on the rise'"

Link to The Guardian

"To watch the sun set over St Joseph's college from the Mill Field in Mill Hill is probably one of my greatest secret pleasures. St Joseph's college is a local landmark, and this is probably the most spectacular view of it. It was a training centre for the Mill Hill Missionaries until they sold it. It has been slowly falling apart ever since, making the odd appearance as a film set, most recently in Call the Midwife."

Daily Telegraph: "Opponents to planning reforms are Nimbys, says IoD head Simon Walker"

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"Simon Walker, director general of the Institute of Directors, said that the Government should stick with its reforms to boost house building and bring down prices.

"Ministers want to replace over 1,200 pages of planning guidance with a new 52 page document called the National Planning Policy Framework to clear away red tape and to stimulate development and economic growth.

"Campaigners including the National Trust are worried that the plans will put communities at risk of large scale development [in] parts of rural England."

Daily Telegraph: "Getting planning right"

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"After months of debate, the Government will shortly respond to the consultation exercise on its draft 'National Planning Policy Framework'.

"...  A streamlined planning policy that is more accessible to the public – and better reflects the competing interests of the economy, the environment and communities – is what everyone should be striving to achieve."

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Link to Daily Telegraph:
"Forced to build on brownfield sites before the countryside"