Environmental Concerns regarding the Planning and Infrastructure Bill

I am committed to ensuring that planning reforms improve outcomes for nature. I share the Government’s determination to rebuild Britain while delivering on its environmental commitments. These include halting species decline by 2030, reducing the risk of species extinction and restoring and creating more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat outside protected sites by 2042.

Local authorities are already expected to plan for development in a way that incorporates green infrastructure and welcome that the Government is clear that planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by minimising impacts. This includes developing habitats that are more resilient to current and future pressures and incorporate features which support threatened species such as bats and hedgehogs. Locally Labour led Sefton Council worked closely with the national trust to turn almost 200 acres locally woodland.

The Government has stated that the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will introduce new environmental planning reforms and says these will help to safeguard the environment at scale. It says these changes will give Natural England and the Environment Agency the capacity they need to work effectively, and the plans will be backed by £500 million for the Government’s flagship Nature Restoration and Marine Recovery Fund schemes. This will unlock and accelerate development while at the same time ensuring the positive impact development can have in driving nature recovery.

I welcome the amendments that have been made to the Bill, following advice from the Office for Environmental Protection. The Bill is now explicit that an Environmental Delivery Plan can only be approved where the effect of the conservation measures outweigh the negative effect of development.

We can do better than the status quo, which too often sees both sustainable housebuilding and nature recovery stall. It is vital that the Government is able to deliver the critical infrastructure needed to ensure we can cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.