MPs launch inquiry into environmental impact of Starmer’s planning reforms

A cross-party committee of MPs has launched an inquiry into the environmental sustainability of the government’s plans for housing growth.

The environmental audit committee will seek views on the nature and climate implications of Labour’s planning reforms. This includes the government’s proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework as it seeks to build 1.5m homes over the five-year parliament.

The government is proposing to re-introduce local housing targets and free up low-quality green belt land which it dubs ‘grey belt’ for development. The committee’s first hearing will take place tomorrow (Wednesday).

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Toby Perkins, chair of the environmental audit committee, said: “Britain has a housing crisis, a climate crisis and a nature crisis. All three must be tackled in tandem and addressing one must not be at the expense of another.

“The government’s ambitious target to build 1.5 million homes in the next five years is significant and we must ensure that climate and nature protections underpin any such reforms to our planning system.

“Conscious that changes to the National Planning Policy Framework have already been proposed, the committee is prioritising this area as our first inquiry. We will be examining whether environmental protections are being sufficiently considered in the reforms, and if not, what the committee can recommend to government to ensure that they are.”