Planning and Infrastructure Bill Report Stage: New Clause 22

What happened: The House of Commons voted on New Clause 22 to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill at Report Stage on 10 June 2025. The clause, tabled by opposition MPs, sought to strengthen planning protections or requirements beyond those contained in the government's bill. The House rejected the amendment by 312 votes to 73, a comfortable majority of 239 for the government's position.

Why it matters: The Planning and Infrastructure Bill is central to the government's ambition to accelerate housebuilding and infrastructure delivery across England. New Clause 22 would have imposed additional planning constraints or requirements on top of the government's reform framework. By defeating it, the government preserved its preferred approach to planning reform, which prioritises streamlining the development process. The outcome means that the additional protections or conditions the opposition sought to embed in the legislation will not, at this stage, become part of the bill.

The politics: The Liberal Democrats provided the overwhelming majority of the 73 votes in favour, contributing 60 ayes, with Plaid Cymru, the Green Party, and the Democratic Unionist Party each adding four votes. Labour and the Labour and Co-operative Party voted unanimously against, supplying the bulk of the 312 noes. Notably, the Conservative Party was almost entirely absent, with 115 MPs not voting and only one casting an aye, suggesting the Conservatives chose not to oppose the government on this occasion rather than vote with the opposition amendment. The vote reflects a cross-party minority attempting to pull the bill in a more protective direction, comfortably outvoted by a united government parliamentary bloc.