Submission to the UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government  

Response to open consultation on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning system

This report represents a response submitted to an open consultation that ran from 30 July to
24 September 2024 by the UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and other changes to the planning system.

It addresses the following issues in the consultation draft of the NPPF:

• Building a modern economy means building a decarbonised economy. Economic policy is inseparable from environmental policy, and the NPPF should clearly reflect this principle.
• Promoting healthy communities means tackling climate change effectively. The NPPF could better support local authorities in promoting healthy communities and tackling childhood obesity by increasing its recognition of the interlinked challenges of climate change and health.
• The NPPF should support actions that would enable large onshore wind projects to be brought online as quickly as possible, as long as they are sited in appropriate locations following consideration of their wider environmental impacts (including on biodiversity and land use).
• Climate change considerations need to be more strongly integrated within the NPPF, with tests and guidance emphasising the need for consistency between planning policy and obligations under the Climate Change Act 2008.
• For the NPPF to effectively contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, it should enable planning decisions to prioritise climate mitigation, adaptation and resilience outcomes.
• Land use will increasingly need to be multifunctional to address climate change.