Member

I turn now to Amendment 153HZJ, which would enable the Secretary of State to direct local planning authorities to make an order under Section 97 of the Town and Country Planning Act to revise or revoke a permission in principle. I hope I can assure the noble Baroness that this amendment is not needed. Permission in principle is an alternative way to seek an “in principle” planning decision for small-scale, housing-led development, compared to the traditional approach of preparing an application for outline planning permission, which could be costly, particularly for an SME builder. Importantly, permission in principle is not a planning permission that allows one to develop. Following the grant of permission in principle, an applicant still needs to obtain technical details consent from the local planning authority to secure planning permission. At this stage, important matters such as design and layout, access and so on are determined.