UK Planning and Infrastructure Bill amendments and policy updates to further streamline consenting process

The UK government has proposed more measures to streamline the nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIPs) regime with further amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill (PIB) alongside updates to national policy statements (NPS) for energy (EN1), energy infrastructure (EN3) and electricity networks infrastructure (EN5).

The PIB's first and second reading in the House of Commons in March with the government looking to deliver a faster and more certain consenting process for NSIPs and to reach its ambitious target of 150 NSIPs within the next four years.

Pre-application consultation scrapped

In his written ministerial statement on 23 April, Matthew Pennycook announced that the PIB will be amended to remove the statutory pre-application consultation requirement for developers proposing a development consent order (DCO). It will no longer be mandatory for developers in the pre-application stage of a DCO to consult prescribed bodies, local authorities, the local community or persons with an interest in the land.

The government has stated that the scrapping of the pre-application consultation stage "could reduce the typical time spent in pre-application by up to 12 months."

Authorisation requirement removed

Further amendments to the PIB include the removal of the requirement for authorisation by the secretary of state to enter and survey the land in connection with a proposed DCO. Developers will no longer need specific authorisation from the secretary of state to survey the land. Crucially this power extends to "a person who proposes to make an application" for a DCO, meaning that applicants can use this power for pre-application surveys. 

This amendment aligns the section 53 process more closely with that under section 172 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016, meaning that applicants can get onto land more quickly with the benefit of these statutory powers or a warrant.

NPS updates

The government is consulting on the proposed amendments to NPSs for energy, energy infrastructure and electricity networks infrastructure.

The main areas of change relate to: 

Centralised strategic network plans

References are made to centralised strategic network plans (CSNPs) that aim to reduce the overall impact of infrastructure through greater coordination between onshore and offshore transmission networks. Proposals to EN5 state that projects that have been assessed and approved via a CSNP will not be re-examined by the secretary of state.

Electricity transmission design principles and the Holford and Horlock rules

Applicants will need to reference all three at an early stage and throughout the development of electricity network projects. NESO will launch a consultation on electricity transmission design principles which will provide greater clarity on the type of asset, its impact and the required mitigation in different environments.

Onshore wind

Following the reintroduction of onshore wind into the NSIP regime, EN3 provides guidance for applicants on factors influencing site selection, technical considerations, mitigation measures and the secretary of state decision-making process.

New guidance on pre-application stage

In an effort to streamline the pre-application stage, EN1 outlines detailed advice for applicants, such as considering environmental licences at the earliest stage possible, avoiding the use of repeated consultations to test the minimum level of mitigation for impacts and ensuring that protective provisions have been agreed ahead of statutory deadlines.

Osborne Clarke comment

Developers should welcome the proposed amendments to the PIB and NPSs. The measures are likely to streamline NSIP consenting through greater clarity and rationalisation of the process. The scrapping of the statutory consultation requirement alongside clear, up-to-date guidance in the relevant NPS will help to drive this process and, in turn, help the government to reach its promised target of 150 NSIPs by 2030.

As a note of caution, however, applicants should be aware that local communities and other stakeholders will still need to be engaged during the development of any NSIP. While removing pre-application consultation may serve to shorten the pre-application stage, there is a risk that overlooking local impacts and constraints will delay and complicate the latter stages of the consenting process. As such, care will still need to be taken to continue community engagement and stakeholder consultation, in order to help streamline the examination and post-consent stages of a project.