Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government to ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the British Geological Survey, Potential for Critical Raw Material Prospectivity in the UK, published on 17 April, which identified potentially strategically important deposits throughout the UK; and what assessment they have made of the ability of local planning authorities to process related planning applications efficiently.
'Potential for Critical Raw Material Prospectivity in the UK' was a study undertaken by the Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre, a programme sponsored by the Department for Business and Trade and delivered by the British Geological Survey. This report delivers on the Critical Minerals Strategy's commitment to collate geoscientific data and identify target areas of potential for critical minerals within the UK. It is a preliminary assessment, and its findings do not mean that the prospective areas identified will necessarily be targeted for exploration and mining. The Government is working with the British Geological Survey to understand next steps.
The Government recognises that many local planning authorities are facing capacity and capability challenges. To make sure that local planning authorities are able to deliver an effective planning service and our proposed reforms we are developing a programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector. The capacity and capability programme will seek to provide the direct support that is needed now, deliver training opportunities for existing planners, and further develop the future pipeline into the profession. In addition, we recently consulted on proposals to increase planning fees by 35% for major applications and 25% for all other applications to increase resourcing and improve the performance of local planning authorities.