Small firms welcome planning proposals

A small business lobby group has welcomed new recommendations for changes to UK planning laws saying they would make it easier for firms to extend their premises.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) was responding to the publication of the Treasury-commissioned review of planning laws by Kate Barker.

The Bank of England economist said ministers must take action to make it easier to get planning permission for new building projects. The report complained that the UK has twice as much "protected" land as in other industrial countries, despite having one of the highest densities of population.

The FSB said Barker's proposals would make it simpler for small businesses to go ahead with minor developments and extensions without the need for planning permission, which can be complicated and time-consuming.

But it warned that any changes to planning laws must still allow for the proper scrutiny of supermarkets, which are already under investigation by the Competition Commission for the alleged abuse of existing planning laws.

Roger Culcheth, FSB local government chairman, said: "Kate Barker's review is good news for small businesses that find themselves mired in the bureaucracy and red tape of long, drawn-out planning applications.

"Proposals that make the process of expanding and developing small business premises easier and faster will be of great benefit to local communities and the economy as a whole.

"However, any changes must not give a green light to supermarkets to ride roughshod over legitimate local concerns about large-scale developments."