Developers should not be forced to pay up front to meet the costs of new roads, schools and other community facilities associated with their schemes, according to the leader of Kent County Council.

Cllr Paul Carter (Con) said planning authorities had to "wake up and smell the coffee" and recognise housebuilding would not take off during the economic downturn unless developers were allowed to renegotiate deals to contribute to the costs of vital infrastructure.

Unless they did, few developers would be prepared to push ahead with their plans. He suggested one of Kent’s largest developments planned for Ebbsfleet Valley in north Kent was among those already stalling because of the issue.

As a result, so-called Section 106 agreements between local planners and companies needed to be "fundamentally reviewed" to take account of falling land and property values, he argued.

Under such agreements, developers agree to pay for the costs associated with large schemes, paying for things like additional school places. Cllr Carter said planning authorities needed to be more realistic.

"The world has changed in property, housing and development. We have got to look at a new way of meeting construction needs and demands. The current Section 106 agreements have got to be fundamentally reviewed to get house building started again," he told a KCC conference at Westminster.

The conference was considering how councils could help businesses during the downturn.

Mr Carter, who is a property developer in London, said there should be a "bonfire of regulations" from councils that were frustrating builders.

Asked how new roads and other community facilities should be paid for, he said developers could be allowed to phase payments, contributing more when the property market and house values rose.