The infrastructure levy is part of the sweeping reforms to the construction sector being introduced by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). It is intended to largely replace the use of section 106 agreements and the community infrastructure levy (CIL). While the levy has its pros and cons, perhaps the biggest problem now is the extreme slowness of its implementation.

The DLUHC issued in March a consultation paper on the infrastructure levy. Its executive summary says the government’s intention is to ensure that local authorities receive a “fairer contribution of the money that typically accrues to landowners and developers…[to] support funding for the infrastructure – affordable housing, schools, GP surgeries, green spaces and transport infrastructure”. So, this is a tax on development.

Read more …