The Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026

Explanatory note

Reproduced verbatim from the instrument as published on legislation.gov.uk (Crown Copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0). The note is prepared by the responsible government department and is not part of the instrument itself.

These Regulations bring into force provisions in the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 (“ the 2025 Act ”).

Regulation 2 brings sections 57 and 104 of the 2025 Act into force on the day after the day on which these Regulations are made. These provisions bring amendments to the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and the New Towns Act 1981 .

Regulation 3 brings sections 4 to 9 and section 11 of the 2025 Act into force on the 24th July 2026. These provisions make various amendments the Planning Act 2008, including introducing a new power for the Secretary of State to disapply the requirement for development consent and bringing in amendments to the application for development consent process for nationally significant infrastructure projects.

Regulation 4 brings into force sections 33 and 36 of the 2025 Act. Section 33 makes amendments to the Highways Act 1980 relating to the procedures for making certain Highways Act 1980 orders and schemes, and section 36 replaces the power to prescribe model clauses by statutory instrument of section 8 of the Transport and Works Act 1992 with a new power to publish guidance on draft orders, which may include model provisions.

Regulation 5 brings into force section 54(2) of the 2025 Act. This provision amends the wording of section 316(3) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1980 .

Regulation 6 makes a transitional provision in relation to section 7 of the 2025 Act. Where an application is submitted before the provision comes into force, section 55 of the Planning Act 2008 will read as if the newly inserted paragraph (3)(ca) is omitted.

Regulation 7 makes transitional provisions in relation to section 33 of the 2025 Act. The transitional provisions make it so that the amendments to the Highways Act 1980 brought into force by these Regulations do not apply in relation to an order or scheme where the date in paragraph (2) is before the date on which section 33 of the 2025 Act comes into force.

An impact assessment has been produced in relation to the Act and copies can be obtained at https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/59-01/0196/IA_annexes.pdf or from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government at 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF, United Kingdom.