Unused land owned by the public sector is to be turned over to housing as part of moves to increase the supply of more affordable homes. The National Regeneration Agency, English Partnerships, is to set out which sites will be used for 30,000 new properties. The areas will include former coalfields and surplus local authority land.
Plans for developments on the land will be subject to the full planning process. 

The Government is facing a call to outline clearly what local government’s role will be in planning offshore facilities, such as wind farms, to ensure there is greater integration with the planning of what happens onshore. The call has come from the Local Government Information Unit following the publication of the long awaited draft Marine Bill. 

This report from Communities and Local Government investigates how councils are using e-government to respond to the needs of the socially excluded and in doing so contribute to the development of a more inclusive society. It highlights that councils have a major strategic enabling role in promoting e-government as an important vehicle for tackling social exclusion.
This strategic role involves taking the lead in collaborative working with other partners including local communities.