The Minister referred to environmental concerns relating to the planning process. It is remarkable, then, that there is no requirement to do an ecological survey of local wildlife—flora and fauna—before planning consent is considered, so I have proposed some amendments to new clause 5 to achieve that.
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I was concerned about a planning proposal in my constituency for 1,500 houses on greenfield land, when there are still brownfield possibilities elsewhere, so I commissioned an ecological survey because the council and the planning authorities were not required to do so. It turns out that in that area there are 16 bird species on the red list and 11 mammal species protected under schedule 5 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which prohibits damage to their environment. How can it be that the planning system does not require an advance ecological survey?
I will not press my amendments to a vote. I simply want to raise the issue and give the Minister an opportunity to explain how she will enforce strict regulation of environmental protections, particularly in the light of the UN biodiversity conference in Canada, where the Secretary-General of the United Nations said that humanity is in danger of becoming a “weapon of mass extinction”. We have to protect species. I have 27 species on one site that is proposed to be destroyed.
The Minister said that the Government are moving to a brownfield-first option. I asked Ministers twice last week what firm commitments council planning officers can rely on in the Government’s attitude towards green belt incursions. That seems to be a major issue affecting Members on both sides of the House, so we are looking for a firm and clear commitment on that.
The Minister was asked earlier—although I am not sure the question was fully understood—what guidance she will give to planning inspectors who are currently considering local authority planning processes, given what she said in the House today and what is in the Bill. That is where we are with the application that I mentioned, which is so damaging. It is unwanted by any representative institution in the constituency and it is damaging to the environment. It is only for planners who like drawing clean lines on a map and greedy developers. It is not wanted, it will damage our environment and it should be stopped.