The Conservatives have pledged to strip as much as £50,000 from the cost of delivering a new home through a sweeping overhaul of planning, environmental and energy-efficiency rules.

Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith (main picture, inset) unveiled the package at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham yesterday as part of what the party describes as its most ambitious deregulation programme in a generation.

Plans include scrapping the Future Homes Standard, abolishing Natural England and the Environment Agency and replacing Section 106 agreements and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) with a single developer charge.

Property Soup reports that the Conservatives claim net-zero building requirements add more than £30,000 to the cost of constructing a home, with biodiversity rules adding almost another £6,000.

FUTURE HOMES SCRAPPED

The Future Homes Standard is due to take effect in March 2027 and includes requirements for low-carbon heating, solar panels, improved insulation and greater airtightness in new homes.

The Conservatives would scrap the standard as part of their drive to reduce development costs.

Griffith described the wider programme as a “bonfire” of regulation but insists it would not create a “free for all” over where developers can build.

Local councillors would retain a role in decisions over development sites.

PLANNING LEVY SHAKE-UP

Section 106 agreements and CIL would meanwhile be replaced by a single charge, which the Conservatives argue would speed up approvals and simplify developer contributions towards local infrastructure.

Natural England and the Environment Agency would also be abolished, with their key functions transferred into the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The party has accused the bodies of adding cost and delays to development through environmental, biodiversity and flood-risk requirements.

Griffith says: “Cheaper homes, lower taxes, and less red tape. This will be the most ambitious deregulation project in a generation.”