The English planning system has at its heart an important, unresolved dilemma. Town planning is supposed to be the process of deciding where to build and where not to build. When the Town and Country Planning Act 1947 took effect the assumption was that local councils, in delivering spatial decisions would act within the confines of government policy. In other words that Westminster set the parameters, and councils filled-in the detail. It has taken two generations for political failure in Westminster and opportunistic spatial exploitation locally for the political class to recognise and say, this is not the case. Instead they have blamed one another for the consequences of policy failure.
But taking on local activists who claim that locally their priorities must be paramount needs national leaders with courage and national leaders with foresight. The much vaunted Westminster model of government is built on confrontational and polarisation. Neither works when it comes to decisions about land use. Here is an extraordinary example of democratic failure, on which everyone has a view. It also proves that planning is not about loca party politics, but is about who governs England, Westminster’s MPs or local authorities councillors?
The headline reads Hillingdon underlines opposition to Conservative Heathrow policy (ukpropertyforums.com ; Mike Lightfoot, October 14, 2026), and says it all. Hillingdon council has restated its firm opposition to Heathrow’s proposed third runway, despite the Conservative Party’s backing for a third runway. In case you did not know, Hillingdon’s Conservative’s control the council. Council leader Cllr Steve Tuckwell has made their views plain. As Heathrow’s host borough the council believes it has a duty to defend residents from the impact of expansion, including pressures on homes, roads, the environment, and quality of life. Tuckwell points out with good reason that ‘those most affected are often overlooked in the national infrastructure debates’. He is right. Little or no attempt is made to convince existing residents sometimes need to accept land use change near them, and certainly no compensation is ever offered to those most badly impacted. . Hardly a surprise that local residents invariably local oppose change.
If the Conservative Party cannot resolve its internal differences, which spatially we saw grow from 2010 to 2024, it shows how contentious defining the boundaries of planning governance have become.
Westminister’s MP’s need to grapple with this dilemma, if they are serious about boosting the future supply of new homes, whilst not alienating local support.
Ian Campbell
22 October 2026
