New research published today shows that protected species like bats and great crested newts are a factor in just 3% of planning appeal decisions, that’s less than half a percent of all planning applications, challenging the Government’s narrative that environmental protections are holding back development. The findings are published as the Planning & Infrastructure Bill reaches a critical milestone, with Committee discussions of the Bill concluding today. The report, Planning & Development: nature isn’t the problem, adds to the growing body of evidence – including the Government’s own impact assessment – showing that nature protections do not hinder economic growth.
In parallel, a new poll*, also published today, shows that the public think the Government is failing nature. Conducted by Savanta and commissioned by The Wildlife Trusts, it finds:
- Less than a third of adult voters believe the Government is taking the nature crisis seriously enough (26%), is listening to local people in planning decisions (24%) and is achieving success in expanding nature-rich habitats (24%).
- Less than a third (32%) also felt the Government had kept its promise to improve access to nature, promote biodiversity and protect our landscapes and wildlife.
- Just a quarter of respondents (25%) said they would support new building developments in their local area if these new developments harmed the local environment.
The Office for Environmental Protection recently declared that the Planning & Infrastructure Bill will cause environmental regression. To date, BBOWT and other NGOs have called for a series of amendments which would tone down the most damaging aspects of the Bill, while also suggesting positive measures to improve it such as adding safeguards for irreplaceable habitats like chalk streams. However, the Government has rejected these and so now BBOWT has joined forces with the RSPB and Wildlife Trusts across the country to call for the removal of Part 3 of the Bill, which they describe as a dangerous "nature recovery pretence" that amounts to a licence to destroy.
The Planning & Infrastructure Bill was introduced in March, following months of false statements from the Chancellor claiming that nature protections were a blocker on development and pledging action in the name of growth.
Estelle Bailey, BBOWT chief executive, said:
“The bill threatens to turn back the clock on decades of environmental progress. It ignores both the evidence and the public mood – people want thriving nature and today’s report makes crystal clear that nature isn’t blocking development. The proposed Nature Restoration Fund gives a green light for destruction disguised as recovery. We urge the Government to scrap Part 3 of the Bill and work with us to create a planning system that delivers for people, wildlife and the climate. Not one that sacrifices our futures for short-term, limited gain.”
Craig Bennett, chief executive of The Wildlife Trusts says:
“Before the General Election Labour promised to restore nature. Under a year later, the Chancellor is leading an ideological charge against the natural world despite it being the very foundation of the economy, society and people’s health. Promises have been broken, and millions of people have been betrayed.
“The Government’s Planning & Infrastructure Bill, in its current form, fundamentally undermines its commitment to protect nature. The so-called Nature Recovery part of the Bill is a Trojan horse – it’s a misnomer because, in reality, it is a licence to destroy. It replaces vital nature protections with a weaker substitute, and has been described by the Government’s own nature watchdog as ‘environmentally regressive’ because it puts irreplaceable habitats and threatened species at risk.
“The Wildlife Trusts and others have offered constructive solutions that would allow the Bill to proceed and achieve its aim to accelerate development whilst maintaining strong environmental protections. We’re appalled that these have all been spurned. Nature is in crisis and must not suffer further damage. Much loved places like the New Forest could now be at risk – that’s why we’re now saying the misleadingly named ‘Nature Recovery’ section must be removed.”
Beccy Speight, RSPB chief executive, says:
“Despite engaging in good faith with the UK Government for many months, it’s now clear that the Bill in its current form will rip the heart out of environmental protections and risks sending nature further into freefall.
“The fate of our most important places for nature and the laws that protect them are all in the firing line. The wild spaces, ancient woodlands, babbling brooks and the beautiful melody of the dawn chorus – it’s these natural wonders that delight people all over the country and support our physical and mental health that are under threat. That cannot be allowed to stand.
“The evidence clearly shows nature isn’t a blocker to growth. The government has identified the wrong obstacle to the problem it’s trying to overcome, and that has led it to the wrong solutions. With no meaningful amendment in sight, the complete removal of Part 3 of the Bill is the only responsible option left.”
The Planning Bill threatens to put the most protected, valuable and vulnerable sites for nature at risk.
Rare chalk streams such as Letcombe Brook in Oxfordshire, the Pang and Kennet in Berkshire, and the Wye and Misbourne in Buckinghamshire, along with their vital surrounding habitats, will no longer be strongly protected from development. Furthermore, any commitments required of developers to restore and improve nature will not be guaranteed to benefit the communities who lost their local natural spaces – compensation could take place miles away, even in another county.
The legislation would significantly weaken important Habitat Regulations – rules which have helped to effectively protect wildlife and wild spaces for decades. In so doing the Bill risks stripping away vital protections without clear requirements on developers to deliver the nature restoration needed to revive precious landscapes such as chalk streams, wildflower meadows and ancient woodlands and to protect treasured species like hazel dormice, otters and struggling bird and butterfly species.
The Planning Bill follows on from months of anti-nature rhetoric from the Chancellor, and amidst a backdrop of an ongoing Treasury squeeze on the farming budget that supports nature restoration.
