The Highland Council is taking a decisive step to address severe housing pressures and unlock economic growth by moving forward with plans to establish three to four Masterplan Consent Areas (MCAs) across the region.

At a meeting of the Economy and Infrastructure Committee, members endorsed the use of MCAs to implement the recommendations of the Highland Housing Challenge Partnership Action Plan, reaffirming the Council's ambitious target to deliver 24,000 new homes in the next ten years.

MCAs function as a legal planning mechanism that grants advance consent for large development sites, thereby drastically reducing the time required for planning approval and delivering essential housing and infrastructure.

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The Committee endorsed progressing with sites at Essich Road, Embo, and Ardersier for the first MCAs. Additionally, the Committee recommended identifying a fourth MCA site on the west coast, near Kishorn Yard, to support ongoing investment and local housing demand.

Councillor Ken Gowans, Chair of the Environment & Infrastructure Committee, called the move a "decisive step forward", noting that MCAs will allow the Council to "respond more quickly to economic opportunities and housing pressures".

The MCA approach is highlighted as a faster, more coordinated, and more inclusive process than conventional planning applications, offering five key decision points where local members can influence proposals. This method is expected to strengthen local democracy by giving communities and elected Members a greater role in shaping development from the outset.

The Council's Planning team will now begin the next phase, which involves consultation with communities, landowners, and agencies. If successful, the MCA model could be expanded to other development opportunities across Highland.