British government has unveiled the revised planning guidelines amidst controversy, defending that the new policy protects the countryside, boost jobs and "help build the homes the next generation needs."

British Planning Minister Greg Clark told members of the parliament on Tuesday that the old, complex system needed reform.

The new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), formally released on Tuesday, is a key part of the government reforms to make the planning system less complex and more accessible, to protect the environment and to promote sustainable growth.

The government has committed to a radical reform of the planning process giving new power to local councils, communities, neighborhoods and individuals.

The new draft of NPPF has been cut from the current 1,000 pages of planning rules to just 50. The Planning Minister said changes would put local people at the heart of the planning system and make it simpler.

The changes in the new policy include helping councils which "wish to bring into being a new generation of Gardening cities", allowing communities to specify where renewable energy sources such as wind farms should, and should not, be located, and permitting councils to provide the parking in town centers to "help them compete with out-of-town shopping centers and supermarkets."

Clark said he had accepted, in whole or in part, 30 of 35 recommendations made by the Commons Communities and Local Government Select Committee - including a reference to local plans, drawn up by councils, remaining "the keystone of the planning edifice."

The planning reforms have been criticized by countryside protection and environment campaigners' organizations, describing the reforms as a license to concrete over the countryside.