Following the passage of the Localism Act, the Government today abolished the regional strategy for the East of England. This is the first regional strategy to be formally abolished in a wider transfer of power to local communities.
The top-down approach of regional strategies from the previous Labour government imposed centrally set building targets on communities, rather than giving local people the powers to plan. The regional strategies coincided with the lowest peacetime levels of housebuilding in the UK since the 1920s.
Andrew Lansley, MP for South Cambridgeshire, commented: “This is a major milestone for localism and an excellent illustration of this Government’s firm belief that planning works best when the people it most affects are at the heart of the system.
"Local councils and residents understand the unique heritage, priorities, aspirations and needs of their area. The revocation of the regional strategy will rightly return power to local councils and local people, who will now have more control over the decisions which shape the places in which they live.
"The East of England regional strategy imposed development upon local communities in a top-down process," he added. "Its removal means the issues that matter to local communities in the region can take centre stage in planning decisions.
"Local empowerment brings about development that is more sensitive to local characteristics and development that is good for local growth – a particularly important consideration in South Cambridgeshire."
Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government said in a statement to Parliament: “Matched with the duty to co-operate, a statutory requirement upon local councils to work together to plan for cross-boundary development, we believe that a locally led planning system can better deliver the homes, jobs and infrastructure the country needs.”
The Localism Act 2011 legislated to provide powers to abolish the last administration’s regional strategies. European Union law required strategic environmental assessments to be undertaken and comprehensive consultation on the environmental impacts of abolition, which was carried out in iorder that the 'negative resolution procedure' could take take effect on 3rd January 2013.