§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the compatibility of PPG6 with the conclusions of the 1998 McKinsey report "Driving Productivity and Growth in the UK Economy" relating to the impact on UK productivity of planning considerations. [119303]
§ Keith HillThe 1998 McKinsey report was not commissioned by the Government. It assessed the productivity of six sectors of the United Kingdom economy in comparison with the United States and France, one of which was food retailing. For food retailing it showed that the United Kingdom lagged behind the other two countries, but that the primary difference was on labour productivity. The United Kingdom food retail sector scored very highly on productivity in its use of land and capital, and, overall, United Kingdom major food retailers were judged to
set the global standard".Land-use planning and other regulations were considered to account for only a small part of the difference in productivity. Nevertheless, the report suggested that planning policy made it difficult for food retailers to develop large-format stores, which might enable them to better compete and displace less productive retailers. They acknowledged, however, that this took no account of differences between countries or of other public policy objectives.
§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will issue revised planning policy guidance for town centres and retail developments. [119304]
§ Keith HillThe draft new PPS6 on town centres will be published for consultation later this summer.
§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the impact of PPG6 on employment levels. [119305]
§ Keith HillNo such assessment has been undertaken, as it is not possible to isolate the effects of PPG6 on employment.
What is clear, however, is that retail employment remains a significant and successful contributor to the economy. Employment in the retail industry grew by 340,000 between 1996 and 2002.
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§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) what research his Department has undertaken with the Treasury to assess the impact of planning guidelines on(a) UK productivity, (b) employment and (c) the UK economy; [119306]
(2) what assessment he has made of the impact of planning regulations on UK productivity. [119439]
§ Keith HillI refer my hon. Friend to the Government's memorandum to the Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions Select Committee on Planning, Competitiveness and Productivity. This summarises the research evidence available from my Department's research programme over the last 10 years. The Select Committee also commissioned their own review of the available evidence.
No research has been undertaken jointly with the Treasury which looks at these specific issues.
§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps his Department has taken on productivity issues related to planning guidelines, in response to the conclusions of the 1998 McKinsey Global Institute study of UK productivity. [119307]
§ Keith HillThe McKinsey study of UK productivity compared productivity in the UK, France and United States for six sectors. In two, food retailing and hotels, they commented on regulation issues including planning, building and fire regulations.
The issues related to planning accounted for a very small proportion of the differences in productivity between UK food retailers. Nevertheless, the report suggested that a more relaxed planning regime would assist the development of larger stores. This suggestion was made without regard to national differences of geography, culture or public policy aims.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has considered the report, and taken its views into account, in developing planning policy.