Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has in place to ensure renewable energy (a) facilities and (b) infrastructure do not damage natural habitats and ecosystems in which they are constructed.

The Government remains committed to delivering on our legally binding targets to achieve clean, safe, healthy, biologically diverse and productive seas, whilst supporting renewable energy development to meet our Net Zero targets.

All renewable energy developments will go through a planning and consenting process. Depending on the size and nature of the development, different Government departments, regulators and statutory nature conservation bodies will be involved. Each development will be assessed for its potential to impact natural habitats and species. Appropriate mitigation and, if necessary, compensation measures will be specified.

The Government intends to mandate biodiversity net gain for all new major development under the Town and Country Planning Act (1990) from November this year, for minor development from April 2024 and for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects from 2025.