THE property arena in general is complex and full of stringent rules and regulations. Anything that would simplify these processes regionally would be of huge benefit to the local property industry and, in turn, the local economy.

I believe that having a regional assembly for the North-East, if approached correctly, would not only help to simplify property regulation, by interpreting such regulation for the specific benefit of the North-East, but would also mean that, generally, more informed decisions will be made for the region, by the people that know the area and its needs best.

For example, Planning Policy Guideline 3 is a nationally-imposed guideline that influences the size, type and affordability of new housing. In my opinion, this guideline is currently geared towards the very different requirements of the South-East, where high-density housing is a necessity, due to lack of available land.

This is less important to us in the North-East, given our lower levels of developed land, and this planning regulation has proven to be a bit of a thorn in our side. I do not believe that this reflects the needs of this region nor the desires of the people who live here, but all new planning applications are currently required to conform to this national standard and others like it.

As recent reports in newspapers have shown, the North-South divide is closing rapidly, with property prices in this region in particular rising by up to 48 per cent in the past year. This demonstrates that there is a huge demand for housing.

However, the demand is not of the same ilk as it is in the South-East, where people are looking for property in a very limited market where there is simply no land to build new homes.

As the population grows, we are facing a situation where there is not enough housing or choice of housing in the region. If a regional assembly could make decisions about property regulation for the North-East, solutions could be identified and actioned a lot quicker than if Whitehall was to become involved.

Overall, I think the North-East Regional Assembly would provide an extremely useful forum for like-minded businesses and individuals to discuss the issues that affect us and not necessarily other regions.

In this way, the social and economic needs of the region will be more readily understood and addressed. A greater regional identity can be achieved and, if demonstrably successful, it could certainly have the effect of creating greater awareness and interest in the electoral process.

Ultimately, a regional assembly would mean better co-ordination at regional level, more accountability, improved and quicker decision-making and a stronger regional voice.

It will however, be imperative to ensure that the creation of such a body does not simply create another tier of ineffective bureaucracy, resulting in added expense and a further complication in the decision- making process.

John Tate is the financial director of Bowey Home