REP Research Seminar - Presenting in person - Prof. Alex Lord, University of Liverpool. Title: "Planning and the ‘who pays?’ dilemma. An impact case."

These are primarily internal Seminars but if you are interested in attending one of our Seminars or for further information, please contact: REPSchoolOffice@henley.ac.uk.

Abstract:

Who should benefit from the uplift in land values resulting from the award of planning consent? Most societies come to the conclusion that the state should intervene to recover (at least) some of this value for investment in public goods and infrastructure, necessitating the imposition of some form of policy intervention. Various options exist to address this fundamental question including negotiated settlements, a levy and auctions. Evidence from various planning systems around the world would suggest that the choice of policy instrument has a significant bearing on built environment outcomes. In this short talk an impact case from REF2024, continuing in this REF period, will be set out to illustrate how a series of specific episodes of reform in the English approach to policy on this subject were shaped by academic research.

Bio:

Prof. Alexander Lord is the Lever Chair of Urban and Regional Planning in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Liverpool. He works on the economic effects of urban and environmental planning and has led numerous research projects for a wide range of funders including, the Lincoln Institute for Land Policy, the Economic and Social Research Council, the UK Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, the Department for Transport, the Royal Town Planning Institute and the homelessness charity, Shelter. In addition to his post at Liverpool, Alex is a visiting professor at the Pantheon Sorbonne in Paris.