Housing: Environment Protection

(asked on 1st March 2017) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to deliver nature-friendly housing developments.


Answered by
Lord Barwell Portrait
Lord Barwell
This question was answered on 14th March 2017

The National Planning Policy Framework seeks to promote sustainable development. The Government encourages and supports innovative ways to deliver the homes this country needs, while protecting and enhancing the natural environment through legislation and policy. We have no plans to exempt publicly-owned special protection and conservation areas from any future public land disposal.

We announced in the Housing White Paper, published on 7 February, a new and strategic approach to the habitat management of the great crested newt. This will not only protect a rare species and its habitat, but will safeguard development from delays, costs and uncertainty. We also announced our proposal to clarify national planning policy on ancient woodland and aged or veteran trees. This reflects the need to protect these irreplaceable habitats from harmful development.

Reticulating Splines