Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that planning policy safeguards existing and future on-site hospital helipad infrastructure and does not restrict its availability for 24/7 air ambulance operations.

The new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), published in August 2026, gives substantial weight to the benefits of providing new or improved public service infrastructure, including healthcare facilities.

The NPPF is clear that existing community facilities and public services should not have unreasonable restrictions placed on their current or permitted operation as a result of development being approved after they were established. This means that development proposals should be capable of being integrated effectively with existing public service activities and infrastructure in their vicinity including blue light services.

Where the operation of an existing activity could have a significant adverse effect on a proposed new development in its vicinity, development proposals should identify the nature of the potential impacts and be able to demonstrate that suitable mitigation can be provided before the development has begun.

The new NPPF and the government’s response to the consultation are available on gov.uk here.