Exclusive: Chris Hinchliff, Labour MP for North East Hertfordshire, is urging the environment watchdog to intervene against planning rules that could permit nearly 16,000 new homes in the Norfolk Broads, one of the UK’s most protected areas. The proposed regulations, termed "cash to trash" by critics, allow developers to overlook damage to protected habitats and species if they contribute to a central nature restoration fund.
Background on the Planning Reforms
These environmental delivery plans (EDPs) have raised concerns among environmentalists, who argue they undermine decades of environmental law, effectively granting a "licence to kill nature." The Norfolk Broads, a biodiversity hotspot housing over a quarter of the UK’s rarest plants and animals, is set to be the first area affected by this EDP. Developers are expected to pay £2,675 per house, totaling £42 million, in exchange for permission to build 15,780 new homes.
Environmental Concerns
According to Natural England, the government’s nature adviser, the development will lead to significant environmental harm, including physical, chemical, hydrological, and biological damage due to increased nitrogen and phosphorus pollution. The Broads are already experiencing ecological decline and require a 91-97% reduction in nutrient pollution to recover.
Call to Action
Hinchliff has called on the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) to halt the approval of the plan, arguing that it breaches the Planning and Infrastructure Act and fails to utilize the best available science. In a letter to Natalie Prosser, chief executive of the OEP, he stated:
