Reeves says UK will scrap red tape and use AI to approve building plans
Chancellor Rachel Reeves will crack down on ‘pointless paperwork’ and speed up planning using AI to reach targets set by Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Reeves laid out these changes today at the first-ever Regional Investment Summit in Birmingham, where she addressed more than 350 business leaders, local mayors, and investors.
Under this blitz on unnecessary bureaucracy, 100,000 companies will enjoy simpler corporate reporting rules, freeing small companies up from having to submit long Director reports to Companies House.
The Chancellor also announced she would implement digital planning checks, which are aimed at helping comapnies to save time and money when building in the UK.
These new checks could see property developers sending photo evidence of their plans to an online platform, where their plans are then approved or denied using trained AI models.
The government will also produce a new online map of underground cables and pipes, which will help planning officials and builders avoid delays caused by accidental damage to infrastructure.
All these changes are in service of the government’s goal to reduce the cost of administration by 25% by the end of the Parliament, which Reeves said could save businesses a total of nearly £6 billion per year.
Other announcements from the Birmingham summit include a new series of private and public sector investments across the UK, with private companies announcing over £10 billion of new investment.
Reeves also announced that the Crown Estate has purchased land in Harwell east to build new advanced manufacturing spaces and laboratories, and that the National Wealth Fund will provide £104 million to finance offshore wind projects in Norfolk and Orkney, along with a heat network in Hull.
“Our mission is clear: to create the right environment for investment through our regulatory reforms, to crowd in capital through our public financial institutions, to break down silos to collaboration on local projects, and to support innovation and growth throughout the UK,” Reeves said.
“Over the last year, we have welcomed billions of pounds of foreign investment in the UK in addition to the domestic investment made by businesses every day.”
“But these are not just numbers. These are higher wages. They are better homes. It’s the transport, energy and digital infrastructure that underpins our nation.”
