ABSTRACT
The UK planning system is underpinned by an extraordinary feat of nationalisation which was passed without the revolution that might have been expected in many other countries. It was the nationalisation of the right to develop land. Instead of any outcry, or even any political opposition, the issues were considered to be of a technical nature that could be pondered upon by a selected body of wise men. The Committee was required to ‘make an objective analysis of the subject of compensation and recovery of betterment in respect of public control of the use of land . . . and to advise on possible means of stabilizing the value of land required for development or retirement’. The terms of reference were radical, though they decided not to recommend the obvious solution of land nationalisation. This chapter considers how successive governments have tried to deal with the problem, from land development taxes to planning gain supplements.
