Local planning won't help us tackle our big national problems

From rising sea levels to demographic change, some issues require local leaders to plan together

England is not well organised when measured against the scale of the environmental, economic and social challenges that face us in the 21st century. This is the simple proposition set out in the Town and Country Planning Association?s latest report, The lie of the land, which argues that if we want to achieve a fair, resilient and prosperous society we must first understand and engage with change effectively; and this will require a consideration of how we respond at local, regional and national levels.

England in 2012 ? unlike Scotland or Wales ? has no government department or agency charged with addressing acute strategic, or ?spatial?, problems across the country. A direct result is that England?s future is much more uncertain than it needs to be.

The gap between the nature of the challenges facing England and our political geography of institutions that will need to respond to them is stark. For example, the concentration of development and resource constraints in the south-east plays out against political fragmentation. London retains comprehensive strategic powers while the greater south-east is characterised by a mosaic of local government, local enterprise partnerships, and other emerging bodies such as local nature partnerships.

When we look at sea level rise and flood defence, the dislocation between England?s functional and political geography becomes clearly visible. The most vulnerable part of England?s coastline, stretching from the Humber to the Thames, is overseen by one Environment Agency region, but when it comes to spatial planning it is subject to 30 local planning authorities with no combined approach.

Even under current government policy this institutional response is inadequate. But the threat of greater than expected sea level rise requires a strategic response on a bigger scale than even previous regional strategies allowed for. The relationship of sea level rise to food production in the east of England is one question that cannot be delayed.

Our report raises a series of concerns about the ending of regional planning and the ability of local approaches to tackle complex national issues such as demographic change, biodiversity and climate change. The loss of regional data raises questions about how well we understand ourselves as a nation.

The report does acknowledge that new technology might be able to break the link between demographic growth and rapid resource depletion ? but only if ?sustained? effort is made by government to ensure these changes happen.

Solutions to these problems are available, but they require a significant culture change in ambition and collaboration between sectors and among government departments. The culture of thinking spatially about our nation is the first step to rebuilding our national organisational capacity.

Uncertainty about national and international pressures is often used to justify the argument that long-term planning is impossible. In fact, the opposite is true: long-term strategies which acknowledge the need for a flexible response is the only way to manage change.

The structures by which we plan for change should be designed not to achieve an end state, but as a process of understanding and adapting within the principles of sustainable development.

Hugh Ellis is chief planner at the Town and Country Planning Association

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