What was going to have been a Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill has now been published as simply the Neighbourhood Planning Bill.

Having already discovered that the priorities of the National Infrastructure Commission are no longer the same as the priorities of the government, the entire role and purpose of the NIC are now likely to be placed under review.

The Queen's Speech to Parliament in May, just four months ago, stated that ministers would introduce a Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill. The legislation also planned to reform the planning system and pave the way for privatisation of the Land Registry.

However, the bill has now been published and it contains not a single mention of the National Infrastructure Commission. The Land Registry's privatisation was also not included in the Neighbourhood Planning and Infrastructure Bill as expected, meaning it is unlikely to go ahead. The Land Registry was due to be sold off under plans drawn up by former Chancellor George Osborne to raise £5bn by 2020 by selling state assets.