Planning and Infrastructure Bill

Lord Crisp Excerpts

Report stage
Monday 3rd November 2025 Lords Chamber

Moved by

[Lord Crisp (CB)]

247: After Clause 108, insert the following new Clause—
“Secretary of State’s duty to promote health improvement and reduce health inequalitiesWhen considering whether or how to exercise any of their functions under the planning Acts the Secretary of State must have regard to the need to—(a) improve the health of persons living in England, and(b) reduce health inequalities between persons living in England.”Member's explanatory statement
This amendment, connected with another in the name of Lord Crisp, would place a duty upon the Secretary of State to consider health promotion when they discharge their planning functions. The amendments use the same wording for the duty and definitions as are used in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill (Clause 43, Health improvement and health inequalities duty).

[Lord Crisp (CB)]

My Lords, in moving Amendment 247 I will speak to Amendment 248 in my name. I thank the noble Lords who have added their names to it, and I thank Hugh Ellis and Rosalie Callway of the TCPA for their support.

In this House, I am sure we all understand that our health status is very largely determined—65% or more—by the so-called social determinants of health: that is housing, environment, employment, wealth and education. The relationship between good and bad housing and good and bad health is particularly close. Planning is a huge factor, with its oversight of the environment, access to nature and blue and green spaces, housing, economic development and much more. Unless these other sectors and planning are involved in promoting health and reducing health inequalities, I fear that the UK’s health status will not improve and may continue to get worse, with knock-on effects on public services and the economy, and that the NHS will simply not achieve its ambitious goals for improvement.

My amendment is not about the NHS; it is about health, important as the NHS is. To quote my old friend Francis Omaswa, who used to run the Ugandan health service, “Health is made at home; hospitals are for repairs”. By all means let us improve the repair service, but we need to focus on health improvement. It is therefore vital that planning plays a role in promoting health and tackling health inequalities. My preferred route would be through the setting of standards for healthy homes and neighbourhoods, but I recognise, having tried this line several times in your Lordships’ House, that there is currently no appetite for that around the House. I fear it will come back to prominence in future years, not least because of the standard of homes that may get built. I hope I am wrong.

--- Later in debate ---

Amendment 247A (to Amendment 247) withdrawn.

[Lord Crisp (CB)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lords who have spoken in support of this amendment; I should have supported the amendment from the noble Lord, Lord Moynihan. I am still not convinced by the Minister’s response or that what she has said will make a material difference to health in this country. Until we take the social determinants of health seriously, we will not see the improvements that we want. I will continue to press this on other occasions. Having said all that, I am not going to move to a vote tonight, given the certainty of losing. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment 247 withdrawn.