Tory councillor slams Rayner’s ‘soft touch’ traveller reforms
Conservative councillor Jane Austin criticized Housing Secretary Angela Rayner's planning reforms that weaken councils' powers to tackle illegal traveller encampments in England.
Jane Austin, leader of the Waverley Conservative council group, accused the Government of implementing a “soft touch” approach to enforcement while her constituency grapples with a surge in unauthorised sites, according to Georgia Pearce writing in GB News.
Speaking to the broadcaster, Austin demanded the Government take “decisive action” on what she described as a mounting crisis in her area. The reforms announced by Rayner this week will strip local councils of key powers and soften planning regulations nationwide.
149 Illegal Sites in One Council Area
The new policy framework significantly weakens the ability of both residents and local authorities to challenge applications for retrospective planning permission on illegal camps, including traveller sites. Most controversially, the updated guidance eliminates requirements for councils to assess “potential environmental damage” when reviewing such applications.
The changes also remove the obligation for authorities to ensure sites “provide a settled base that limits the need for long-distance travelling” during the assessment process.
Austin highlighted the scale of the problem in Waverley, revealing that her council area alone is dealing with nearly 150 illegal sites. She told GB News that the issue ranks among the top concerns for local residents and represents primarily a planning enforcement challenge.
The councillor disclosed that Waverley now has the sixth highest number of unauthorised traveller sites in the entire country, with 149 illegal locations recorded. That figure represents a dramatic increase from just seven such sites in 2023.
Government Warnings on Settlement Locations
Officials have indicated that under the new policy framework, “locations not well-related to existing settlements may be appropriate” for development, raising concerns among rural communities about enforcement capabilities.
The reforms form part of Rayner’s broader push to centralise planning decisions and reduce local opposition to development applications across England. Critics have characterised the approach as undermining democratic accountability and removing community input from planning processes.
Austin’s criticism echoes wider Conservative concerns that the Labour Government is implementing inconsistent enforcement policies that favour certain groups while cracking down on others, a pattern some have labelled as “two-tier” governance.
The dramatic spike in unauthorised sites in Waverley from seven to 149 in just three years underscores the challenges facing rural councils attempting to manage land use and maintain planning standards without adequate enforcement mechanisms.
With information from GB News
