The government has published the following Working Paper, which "invites views" relating to build out rates on housing sites:

Consultation document:

• May 2025: Planning Reform Working Paper - Speeding Up Build Out (pdf) (link).

Note: This post relates to the working paper. For the associated consultation document (which was published on the same day), please view this post.

Notes:

• The "Summary" at the start of the above document includes the following information:
  - "This paper invites views on further action the Government should take to speed up homes being built. It sits alongside the Government's technical consultation on requiring transparency and accountability measures for build out rates on housing sites.".
  - "We know that slow build out is of great frustration to many local planning authorities and communities that rightly expect homes, infrastructure and services that have been promised as part of a planning approval to be delivered as quickly as possible. We also know that developers are responsive to commercial incentives and build out homes at a rate that is beneficial to their business and reflective of the wider economic environment.".
  - "This paper therefore invites views on options the Government could pursue to ensure the right incentives exist in the housing market, and local planning authorities have the tools they need, to encourage homes to be built out more quickly. In addition to the transparency and accountability measures set out in the technical consultation, this includes incentivising and supporting models of development that build out faster, such as partnership models, greater affordable housing, public sector master-planned sites, and smaller sites. We also invite views on giving local authorities the ability - as a last resort - to charge developers a new 'Delayed Homes Penalty' when they fall materially behind pre-agreed build out schedules.".
  - "A series of questions are posed at the end of the paper on which we welcome responses and will consider all views, before determining how and whether these proposals are taken forward.".
• Note: The webpage (link) for the above consultation document includes the following information:
  - "This working paper and consultation is intended to inform discussions with the sector, to determine whether and how to take these proposals forward. Alongside these discussions, we welcome responses to the series of questions that are posed at the end of the paper. Please note that we have set a deadline for responses to be submitted to this working paper by 11:59pm on Monday 7 July [2025].".
• Note: The above consultation document is shown on the "Collection - Planning Reform Working Papers" page (link).

Other sources of information:

• May 2025: Government press release - "'Get on and Build' Deputy Prime Minister urges housebuilders" (link).