The Office for Environmental Protection                                          ESH0069

Written evidence submitted by
The Office for Environmental Protection

Response to call for evidence on environmental sustainability and housing growth

The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Environmental Audit Committee’s (EAC) call for evidence on how the Government’s proposed reforms to national planning policy and housebuilding targets might affect environmental protections and current approaches to sustainable development.

We hope this response will assist the EAC by highlighting several areas of work completed or currently being undertaken by the OEP, which are relevant to the background information, or the questions raised in the call for evidence.

The reports and other work referenced here provide evidence supporting our view that there needs to be careful consideration regarding how policies for development, housing and infrastructure can be achieved in synergy with Government aspirations for the environment, nature and the climate. We consider that the right approach can deliver both.

Finally, the OEP would be very happy to discuss any of our areas of work and our findings in more depth should the Committee find that of assistance.

Previous work

We highlight the following previous work as being of relevance to this call for evidence:

• The OEP responded in October 2024 to the Government’s consultation on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system. This response addresses several questions raised in the EAC’s call for evidence and can be accessed here: www.theoep.org.uk/report/oep-response-national-planning-policy-framework-consultation

• The OEP published a report in October 2023 following a detailed review of the implementation of three key regimes designed to assess the environmental effects of proposed developments: Environmental Impact Assessment, Strategic Environmental Assessment, and Habitats Regulations Assessment. The report mainly focused on planning and potential impacts on biodiversity and can be accessed here: www.theoep.org.uk/report/environmental-assessments-are-not-effective-they-should-be-due-practical-barriers.

• The OEP gave advice in May 2022 on biodiversity net gain, making recommendations for Defra and the previous Government to consider when developing secondary legislation, policy and guidance. The advice can be accessed here: www.theoep.org.uk/report/oep-advice-response-biodiversity-net-gain-consultation

• The OEP also responded in May 2022 to the previous Government’s nature recovery green paper and gave advice on proposals to amend the Habitats Regulations Assessment process. Many of our recommendations are also relevant to the recently published Planning Reform Working Paper: Development and Nature Recovery (www.gov.uk/government/publications/planning-reform-working-paper-development-and-nature-recovery/planning-reform-working-paper-development-and-nature-recovery) Our response to the nature recovery green paper can be accessed here: www.theoep.org.uk/report/oep-response-government-nature-recovery-green-paper-and-advice-proposals-reform-habitatsreform the Habitats Regulations Assessment | Office for Environmental Protection

• The OEP gave advice to the previous Government in August 2023 on proposed amendments to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill that would change the Habitats Regulations Assessment process for certain nutrient impacts on protected wildlife sites (linked to the need to achieve “nutrient neutrality”). The advice can be accessed here: www.theoep.org.uk/report/proposed-changes-laws-developments-will-weaken-environmental-protections-warns-oep

Ongoing work

The following elements of our current work will also be relevant to the Committee’s interest in this area:

• The OEP is currently engaging with Responsible Authorities and other stakeholders involved in Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS) to help inform our evaluation of how these new measures will contribute to nature’s recovery. We are assessing 12 selected LNRS as well as analysing information received about barriers and enablers to their development and implementation. We aim to publish our findings and recommendations in a report to Parliament in the spring or summer of 2025. For more information, visit: www.theoep.org.uk/news/oep-blog-how-will-local-nature-recovery-strategies-help-deliver-thriving-plants-and-wildlife.

• The OEP is currently working on an in-depth analysis of the implementation of laws relevant to protected sites (Sites of Special Scientific Interest, Special Protection Areas and Special Areas of Conservation) on land and in freshwater. We are assessing governance, resourcing, designation, monitoring, management and use of regulatory tools. We aim to publish our findings and present recommendations in a report to Parliament in the spring.

December 2024