Section 106 Agreement consultations

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has launched a consultation on proposals for speeding up the process of negotiating and completing section 106 agreements. In particular, the consultation will discuss:

1. Whether a dispute resolution mechanism should be available where section 106 negotiations breach statutory or agreed timescales;
2. Whether an automatic or deemed section 106 agreement after set timescales would be workable in practice;
3. Which bodies or appointed persons should provide the dispute resolution service;
4. Whether section 106 dispute resolution be available for all types of planning application;
5. Whether any dispute mechanism should include the determination of the related planning application.

The consultation is also seeking views on whether the requirement to provide affordable housing contributions acts as a barrier to the provision of dedicated student accommodation. The government will consult further on any changes in relation to student accommodation should the responses to this consultation suggest that there is an issue.

The consultation applies to England only and closes on 19 March 2015.