Planning and Compensation
All the fuss over the compensation clauses of the Town and Country Planning Bill could probably have been avoided if Ministers had resorted earlier to the simple expedient of discussing the knotty points with Members of the House of Commons. The compromise which the Government has finally adopted goes far to meet the objections of reasonable critics without yielding to those who stand out for the more extreme claims of property-owners. The general principle is left as before—that compensation for property acquired by a town-planning authority shall be assessed by reference to prices ruling in March, 1939. It is not proposed that property-owners shall benefit by war-time rises in property values, still less that speculators should gain by having attempted to exploit the situation. On the other hand, it is recognised that an owner-occupier of a house or of agricultural property would suffer hardship if he were put to the necessity of rebuilding when costs have risen, and therefore he may claim something up to 3o per cent. over the 1939 price. It was also obviously right to permit an owner who had spent money in improving a property since March, 1939, to make a claim in respect of the improvement. But while the owner of a property let on short lease is to rank as an owner-occupier and gain the benefit of the new concession, it is not clear why the lessor for a longer term should be debarred from like benefit. The amended clauses do not look like securing -as easy passage through the House as was expected.
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