The King’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament brought potential good news for all of us who are involved with Shariah-compliant real estate development.
Bilal Ahmed, our Founder and Executive Chairman, gives his views on what all of this means for developers – many positives, and also some challenges ahead…
Potential good news
The King’s Speech has brought potential good news for all of us who are involved with Shariah-compliant real estate development. Among the 40 Government bills announced there are encouraging highlights and some challenges.
Although we know that new ministerial teams are still coming to grips with the full scope of their responsibilities, the King’s Speech signalled some important broad intentions, emphasising a desire to accelerate the delivery of high-quality infrastructure and housing through planning reforms.
This is great news for developers, and those who can quickly prepare sites with planning consultants – swiftly transforming proposals into clear, actionable strategies – are poised to gain the most from these announcements.
Three new bills could bring major change
The new Planning and Infrastructure Bill is set to accelerate housebuilding and infrastructure delivery by streamlining the delivery process for critical infrastructure and reforming compulsory purchase compensation rules. This means that local authorities will have their planning committees modernised, and their capacity increased in order to provide more predictable services to developers and investors.
The English Devolution Bill devolves powers to local authorities, regional and metro mayors, and devolved bodies with the aim of creating a dynamic economy as a key driver of growth. Devolution is to become the default setting, removing the need for negotiations over the powers of local bodies. This could be beneficial to real estate developers such as Sama who are keen to work in partnership with local authorities to create long-lasting value for investors and communities.
More generally, the National Wealth Fund Bill, which is a key part of Labour’s manifesto capitalised with an initial £7.4 billion, will establish a permanent National Wealth Fund to make transformative investments across the whole of the UK’s economy. Economic growth would of course benefit all of us, and that has a very positive effect on the real estate development industry.
Delivering a bold vision
The King’s Speech has set forth an exciting and bold vision for the UK’s future, but the challenge now lies in the Government’s ability to transform these initiatives into effective actions that successfully balance economic growth, sustainability, and local community interests.
To find out more about Sama Investment Group visit www.samainvestments.co.uk
