Drop in number of major applications decided since Mayoral CIL

Sara Parkinson, associate director at property firm CBRE, was reported as saying that the figures suggested that developers are "taking time to consider how they are going to deal with CIL".  Ms Parkinson gave the example of developers "taking more time to consider how their schemes should be phased in response to the levy", Planning Resource report. 

Steve Woolley, a consultant to Peter Brett Associates and former CIL team leader at the Department for Communities and Local Government, was quoted by Planning Resource as saying that the figures showed that councils and developers had worked hard to tie up section 106 planning gain agreements before CIL charges came into force.  Mr Woolley's conclusion that this accounted for fewer schemes being in the pipeline in the year following the introduction of CIL is borne out by the figures.  London planning permissions increased by 487% in March 2012 ahead of Mayoral CIL coming into effect on 1 April 2012 levy deadline and Planning Resource noted that there was a spike in the number of major applications decided in the quarter immediately before Mayoral CIL came into effect. 

Assessment was also undertaken by Planning Resource of the number of major applications decided for the first five councils to begin charging CIL; the average number of major applications decided per quarter in Newark and Sherwood, Shropshire, Redbridge, Portsmouth and Huntingdonshire fell by 31 per cent for the 12 months following the introduction of CIL compared with the 12 months preceding the introduction of CIL.