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Government delays implementation of biodiversity net gain causing yet more developer uncertainty

September 28, 2023
Biodiersity Net Gain
The Government has announced that it will be delaying the implementation of new environmental laws which will see developers compelled to meet targets which will improve countryside and wildlife habitats.

As discussed in our recent series of articles, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) was supposed to become a mandatory part of the planning system in November.

However, in yet another U-turn by Government, it has been confirmed by sources that this will be delayed until January 2024.

The news comes as a disappointment, as the November deadline is what developers have been planning for, and investing in, for several months as part of their recent planning applications.

Indeed, many have already spent a great deal on instructing consultants to undertake biodiversity metric analysis and accompanying reports ahead of the legislation coming in.

The delay will disappoint environmentalists, delaying the environmental benefits that would have arisen from the requirement for 10% BNG to be baked into development plans, however with Government belatedly confirming the revised deadline of January 2024, the delay will not be extensive.

Of course, a delay – even of just two months – will go some way towards helping those development proposals struggling to obtain 10% BNG, or where mitigation is not yet possible, potentially avoiding more delays in the planning system in the short term.

It will allow additional time for Councils to upskill planning officers to interpret BNG proposals and provide advice to applicants wishing to develop and identify suitable mitigation opportunities.

The delay also affords Government / DEFRA with more time to put in place mitigation measures / credit schemes, the identification of which will allow more transparency for developers when buying development sites.

If in doubt over BNG, developers should seek professional advice to ensure that their planning application does not fall foul of requirements at a local level.

David Ramsay, Head of Planning, Vail Williams LLP.

As discussed in our recent article, developers will still need to be aware that some Councils have already adopted their own BNG targets as part of their Local Plans – many of which are higher than the proposed Government target of 10%.

These targets will still potentially become policy at a local level, ahead of the Environment Act, and will need to be complied with in order to achieve planning permission.

At the other end of the scale, those adopted Local Plans without a BNG requirement will still be a material consideration, and BNG will not be required.

If in doubt over BNG, developers should seek professional advice to ensure that their planning application does not fall foul of requirements at a local level.

Our planning team can support you with this, as well as providing expert insight to ensure your proposed plans meet the appropriate BNG target – which for some Local Authorities, can be as high as 20%.

For more information get in touch.