What the Tory planning row means for Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak is facing his first Tory Commons rebellion since entering 10 Downing Street. After 47 Tory MPs threatened to back an amendment on planning reform which would oppose compulsory housebuilding targets, the government has pulled the vote until further notice. The rebels were led by former cabinet minister Theresa Villiers and largely consist of MPs with 'blue wall' seats who worry that constituent concerns over new developments could cost them their seats.

Inevitably, a war of words has broken out over the so-called 'nimbys' – with the co-author of the 2019 manifesto Rob Colvile labelling the amendment 'Destroy the Planning System and Make the Recession Worse'. One of the would-be rebels has hit back this morning. Writing for Times Red Box, Bob Seeley, MP for the Isle of Wight, argues that being a nimby doesn't have to be a bad thing: 'My definition of nimby is someone who is a local patriot.' He goes on to say the planning system needs improvement – with more of a focus on sustainability and the environment as well as local consent.

The Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove will meet with the rebels in the coming weeks to hear their concerns. He will face an uphill battle. Last night on the MP planning concerns WhatsApp group, the rebels cheered the delay of the vote as good news. Villiers said they must stay focussed and former chief whip Wendy Morton talked of the need to 'keep the pressure' up.

How big a problem is this for Sunak? In some quarters, it is being cited as evidence of his weak authority and lack of grip over a disunited party. However, it's worth taking a step back. Rebellions over planning are nothing new in the Tory party. While MPs are questioning Gove's judgement in initially pushing ahead as he did, such votes always have the potential to be difficult. Boris Johnson had to abandon his plan for the most radical shake up of planning laws in decades after MPs started to blame successive by-election defeats won by the Liberal Democrats on planning concerns. It means this isn't a problem about Sunak's leadership per se. However, if he cannot persuade the rebels to climb down, or at least find a landing zone, his government will look to be in a state of paralysis on one of the key issues of the day – particularly for younger voters.