NEW: Britain is the most expensive place in the world to build a new nuclear power station. Here's how to change that. Backed by industry and senior politicians from across the spectrum (including a former SoS and a former nuclear minister), @BritainRemade have launched a plan

New: Every British development of 150+ homes is screened for an environmental impact assessment. And many are required to produce a full EIA. This even applies to homes built on car parks. In Holland, this only applies to 2000+ home projects. https://t.co/bJadBYRQmJ

Lots of people are saying that abolishing stamp duty is pointless because it will just push up property prices by an equal and opposite amount. This is unlikely to be the case. The economic incidence of SDLT isn’t 100% on the buyer. Because the supply of housing is so fixed

My country is unwell.

170 green groups demand Government keep a 2-year-old Tory planning rule blocking vital infrastructure and delaying grid connections that would bring cheaper, cleaner energy to millions. Government should prioritise the needs of the British people and hold their nerve. 1/

NEW: How an obscure duty from Gove's 2023 planning law could lead to a lawsuit that will push up the nation's electricity bill by billions. https://t.co/lTWnt4YGFY

In 2010, a community fundraised to build a play-area for children. It is now being demolished after a five-year legal case.

Is there a better illustration of what needs to be fixed in 2025 Britain than this?

The Devonshire in Soho is London's most hyped pub and is consistently full. Every Friday and Saturday it closes 2 hours earlier than the family pub at the end of my residential street in Brighton. A new duty to promote economic growth for licensing authorities is overdue.

On a similar note, I recently read an article about a murder, but did you know the median Brit isn’t murdered. Makes you think.

@Ben_A_Hopkinson Ben's thread here:

The paper is co-authored by my former colleague @Ben_A_Hopkinson. It builds on his excellent paper which proved Britain is the most expensive place in the world to build new trams and set out a clear plan to change that. https://t.co/5gzIonPP71

Many cities in Britain want to build trams, but there's a problem: it takes way too long. Why? Mayors have to get planning approval from the DfT and lack the powers to self-fund via local taxes. Let's devolve the powers so Mayors can get on with it. https://t.co/s2dZRnIr4X

Strasbourg in France has a comprehensive tram network of 6 lines and 35 miles of track, which serves its population of 500,000. Leeds has a population of 812,000 and it goes without. What's the difference between the two? Mayors that have the power to build 🧵

Stamp duty is the worst tax Britain has. It makes the housing shortage significantly worse by penalising people for downsizing and stopping people from moving around to better jobs. There is literally no better tax cut for growth you can do than getting rid of it.

After 40 years neoliberalism, the state has been stripped to the bone. Market fundamentalism and libertarian ideology reign supreme. 🥴

Britain Remade's @Michael_J_Hil explains how this would work in greater detail in this post. https://t.co/W6ZBzL8uVm

Stamp Duty is the worst tax there is, but abolishing it isn't cheap. And there's a drawback: a big chunk of the benefit would flow to wealthy homeowners as a windfall. For these reasons, I can't see the Chancellor copying Kemi's plan. Economists typically advocate swapping it

Link to study:

Stamp Duty is a terrible tax. The Australian Treasury published a study ranking taxes in order of economic impact. They found: - Stamp Duty is the most economically harmful tax destroying 75p for every £1 raised. - It is eight times more harmful to economic growth as VAT.

This ‘key duty’ has only existed for two years. National Parks are given “the highest possible protection” in National Policy Statements. That will not and should not change. https://t.co/v77TzQT27p