What the war taught us

摘要

Although Alistair Darling did not directly mention the planning gain supplement (PGS) in either his pre-Budget report or his Comprehensive Spending Review speech, the chancellor used the occasion to announce a decision that will affect all sections of the construction and property industry. Not only has the government cancelled plans for the unpopular supplement, but it has accepted the recommendations of an all-industry group, led by Sir Stuart Lipton, to introduce a tariff system. The reference to the supplement is buried in the documents issued alongside the pre-Budget report, and it takes the form of a reference to Kate Barker's 2004 Review of Housing Supply. It was this document that first proposed the introduction of the PGS, the purpose of which was defined as a "levy on development to raise additional resources to invest in the infrastructure needed to support housing growth".