The House of Lords voted down the Government’s planned nutrient neutrality reform, after a strong response from environmental groups criticised the plans
The Government plan to boost housebuilding via relaxed nutrient neutrality laws has failed, as the House of Lords voted down the amendment to the Levelling Up & Regeneration Bill.
As the amendment was introduced at a late stage in the legislative process, the proposed nutrient neutrality reform cannot go back to the House of Commons for consideration and must be presented again in a new bill- effectively starting from scratch.
The plans were originally announced with a wealth of funding attached
Housing secretary Michael Gove and environment secretary Thérèse Coffey debuted the plans in late August, saying that “these changes will provide a multibillion-pound boost for the UK economy and see us build more than 100,000 new homes.”
Developers have criticised the nutrient neutrality laws for causing housebuilding delays with excessive product costs and approval delays.
The Lords voted down the nutrient neutrality reform 203 to 156
The subject has been strongly divisive not only between developers and environmental groups, but between the government and the opposition.
Shadow spokesperson for levelling up, housing, communities and local government in the House of Lords Baroness Hayman, told the chamber: “It is abundantly clear that there are far better ways to build the new homes we need than at the expense of our precious environment… polluting our rivers is not a price we need to pay for sufficient housing supply.”
Shadow minister Nick Thomas-Symonds had previously criticised the issue as “an entirely bogus dilemma”. Speaking to Radio 4, his reponse was blunt: “Don’t pretend it’s a choice between looking after our environment and building more houses, because it isn’t.”
Meanwhile Michael Gove said that Labour was depriving “the dream of homeownership for thousands of families”, through mobilising their peers to reject the nutrient neutrality reforms.
The housebuilding industry is seeking clarity on next steps
Karen Allso, managing consultant – Site Solutions at Ramboll commented: “The adoption of a catchment scale management approach could, in principle, be pragmatic. However, it would be necessary to further develop the standards and criteria for management of such a plan such that it can be demonstrated that a scientific and evidence-based approach is being taken. Without this evidence, planning authorities may be left without the certainty which they require to demonstrate that no additional nutrients would be added to the catchment of an ecologically designated site and thus that the requirements of the Habitats Regulations are being met.
“It is also notable that some of the strategic measures detailed by the government are either in existence already or would have been implemented irrespective of the proposed changes, with little evidence to support any material improvements achieved so far.
“The outcome from the House of Lords indicates that the uncertainty surrounding how the proposed changes would enable the Habitats Regulations to be met is significant. It will be interesting to see what next steps the Government may take in the House of Commons, including whether the matter will now be closed or if a further amendment to the Levelling-Up Regeneration Bill will be put forwards. In the meantime, the existing requirements and regulations remain in place, leaving housebuilders, regulators and those involved in nutrient credit transactions in a state of limbo”.
