Lazaros Tsenekidis is Senior Public Affairs Officer at the RTPI
As summer winds down and we approach the autumn season, the RTPI is gearing up for an exciting round of party conferences. Party conferences are annual gatherings held by political parties in the United Kingdom. They provide a platform for party members, politicians, activists, and supporters to come together to discuss party policies, share ideas, and engage in political discourse. On behalf of our members, the RTPI will be attending conferences held by the Liberal Democrats, Labour, and Conservatives this year to make the case for planners and better planning.
We are attending party conferences as they provide an opportunity for organisations to engage directly with politicians and policymakers. By participating, we can promote planners’ contributions to key political outcomes like housing, the environment, transport and many others. It is a chance to advocate for changes that would enable planners to do more in the public interest and is an important platform that the RTPI’s presidential team use to champion the role of planning. At this year’s conferences we will also be promoting our Strategic Planning Research findings.
This year’s party conferences will be interesting given the changing political environment following July’s General Election.
A few highlights from the 2023 conference season
Party conferences often include lots of panel discussions, workshops, and policy debates. We will actively engage in these discussions to ensure that planning is firmly on the political agenda and that politicians, the media and the public can be better informed about planning. With planning being front and centre in the political agenda, we will make sure our members' voices are heard across all party conferences. This also helps our public affairs team to understand how decisions are being made and how we can confront the challenges faced by planners in the year ahead.
This year, we will be hosting our own events at Labour and Conservative party conferences. Members can stay connected with the RTPI’s party conference activities through our website and social media channels. These include:
Labour Party Conference (in Liverpool):
RTPI private roundtable: "How can strategic planning deliver more homes and infrastructure?" – on Monday 23 September. We’ll be joined by parliamentarians, councillors, RTPI members and other representatives of our sector.
“How can Labour deliver the high-quality, sustainable homes we need?” – 3pm, Monday 23 September, at Room 11B, ACC Liverpool (inside the secure zone). In this New Statesman public event, our RTPI President, Lindsey Richards, will be joined by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Lords Minister for Housing and Local Government), alongside speakers from other ‘Joint Institutes’ in the built environment.
Conservative Party Conference (in Birmingham):
RTPI Private Roundtable: “What role can planners and local authorities play in creating sustainable, climate resilient communities?” – on Monday 30 September. We’ll be joined by councillors, RTPI members and other representatives of our sector.
The team will also be busy contributing to discussions and roundtables on a wide range of planning matters with organisations like Planning Futures and others. You can always check the party conferences’ guides for the events our delegates will speak at.
