Councillors in Bath and North East Somerset have expressed frustration after the government imposed significant changes on the council’s housing policies. With the upcoming submission of their new “local plan” — a blueprint outlining planning policies and development locations for the next 20 years — the council has been forced to double its housing targets and dilute environmental protections under tight deadlines and limited scrutiny.
Originally tasked with accommodating 13,000 new homes, the council now faces a mandatory target of 27,000 homes, more than doubling the initial requirement. This escalation has come with restrictions on the council’s ability to enforce stricter environmental rules. For example, a proposed requirement for developers to achieve a 20% biodiversity net gain — twice the national standard — has been blocked. However, council officers believe they have identified potential workarounds to retain some of these stronger standards in select developments.
Councillor Hal McFie, representing Keynsham East for the Liberal Democrats, voiced deep concern about the process during a scrutiny panel meeting on May 20. “They have just trussed us up. There’s no way about it, it’s very difficult for us to do anything impactful,” he said, highlighting how the volume of last-minute changes has limited councillors’ capacity to review and influence the plan.
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Panel members only received a summary of the local plan, with the full document due to be published alongside the council cabinet report. While the public will be invited to comment, these consultations largely serve the government inspectors who will approve the plan, rather than empowering local councillors to shape it.
Independent panel member Grant Johnson echoed these concerns: “It does feel like this meeting is a bit of a waste of time […] because it does not seem like we are really able to scrutinise much.”
Council officers explained that strict government-imposed deadlines — mandating submission by the end of the year — leave little room for extensive engagement or detailed scrutiny. “That is an absolute fixed deadline from government. And it is that deadline that then is driving […] the rest of the process which does make it difficult to achieve all of the engagement we would like to achieve,” they said.
The revised plan largely shifts new housing developments to areas outside Bath, minimizing risks to the city’s UNESCO World Heritage Site status. While this adjustment may protect Bath’s historic character, the overarching challenge remains: balancing government mandates with local priorities amid restricted decision-making flexibility.