Centre-right think tank Bow Group report calls for 'lighter, more flexible, neighbourhood focused system'

The centre right think tank The Bow Group has published a paper, Our Towns, Our Cities: The Next Steps for Planning Reform, by Nick Cuff and William Smith on planning and urban design, arguing that house building is being plagued by a system of box ticking, gold plating and target setting at a time when the recession is cutting new builds by half.

The research, which included over 50 freedom of information requests and interviews with a panel of developers, public and private planners, also...