Elliott Wood joins call to put net zero at the heart of the new Planning Bill – Latest

We are proud to join forces with the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) and Aldersgate Group to call on the Prime Minister to ensure the new Planning Bill directly aligns with the obligations under the Climate Change Act.

Alongside 100 prominent business leaders, we have signed a letter to the Prime Minister and Secretaries of State calling for the net zero transition, nature’s recovery, and climate resilience to be at the heart of the UK’s new planning system.

The letter highlights how planning can play a fundamental role in meeting the Government’s new homes target, achieving its environmental goals, and delivering the infrastructure that is needed for the transition to a decarbonised, climate-resilient economy.

It calls for:

• The new Planning Bill to align directly with, and support, the UK’s net zero target and ambitions for nature set out in the Environment Bill

• Clarity on how land allocated for ‘growth’ will be compatible with achieving net zero, securing nature’s recovery and delivering development resilient to the impacts of climate change.

• Genuinely enhanced levels of protection in planning for designations in the Environment Bill intended to support nature’s recovery.

• Increased resourcing and skills support for local planning authorities, in order to support their ability to set local targets, and deliver across multiple objectives in their local areas.

Read the letter here and find out more on the UKGBC website.

Our industry is willing and able to make the changes needed to counter climate change, and this is a clear opportunity for the Government to enact legislation that will help make that a reality.