The government may hand local leaders direct control over growth plans that determine where new homes get built and which transport links get funded. The proposed changes come under the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, introduced to Parliament this week.
The government says the bill allows local people to take back control of their regions, from strengthened rights to save community assets to increased powers for directly elected leaders and mayors who can unlock housing, transport and jobs through Local Growth Plans. This will help shift power from Westminster to those with “skin in the game” and rebalancing prosperity across the nation as part of the Plan for Change.
Rent Review Clause
The bill includes a commitment to ban upward-only rent review clauses in commercial leases.
Trade body UKHospitality has been calling for a ban on upward-only rent reviews since the turn of the century. The previous Labour government committed to implementing a ban in the mid-2000s, before the proposal was derailed due to the financial crash. The Hospitality Sector Council has included the ban as a key ask to drive post-Covid recovery.
Kate Nicholls, chair of UKHospitality, said: “Unjust upward-only rent review clauses have been hitting hospitality businesses for years, making rents unnecessarily expensive. They have been punishing the high street and constraining investment, and it’s the right move for the Government to ban them completely.
“This ban, alongside business rates reform and efforts to simplify licensing, are critical to cutting costs and red tape for businesses, and allow hospitality to drive high street regeneration. It’s also positive that the Bill doesn’t include any future tourist tax in England.”
Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon OBE MP, commented:
“For too long power and opportunity has been concentrated in Westminster and Whitehall while the local councils millions rely on have been frustrated and diminished.
“Devolution begins the work of fixing that, with this Bill delivering freedom to local leaders to make decisions for their local areas in partnership with local communities, unleashing more growth and more opportunities for people as part of our Plan for Change.”
