Government moves to ease onshore wind planning ban

The government has announced moves that could trigger a relaxation of the de facto planning ban on onshore wind farms in England.

On Tuesday night, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced a commitment to launching a consultation on changes to national planning policy on onshore wind.

The move heads off a potential rebellion by backbench Tory MPs over the government’s tight planning restrictions on onshore wind in England, which were introduced under ex-prime minister David Cameron’s Conservative government in 2016.

Around 30 MPs, including former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz truss have signed an amendment to the government’s Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which would unpick these restrictions.

The government has said local councils will remain responsible for onshore wind applications and they will not be restored to the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project regime.

However, a consultation on the National Planning Policy Framework, which is due to conclude by the end of April 2023, will explore how local authorities “demonstrate local support and respond to views of their communities when considering onshore wind development in England”.

The current planning rules, which were put in place in 2016, establish a series of hurdles to onshore wind farms securing planning permission.

Firstly, councils must designate land for onshore land in their local plans. Then councils must consult on any schemes for onshore wind farms before applications have been submitted in order to prove they have community support, a requirement that no other form of development has to meet.

Largely as a result of these restrictions, wind farm development in England has almost entirely ground to a halt.

The government’s proposed changes water down the rigid requirements for onshore wind sites to be designated in local plans to councils being able to demonstrate their support for certain areas as being suitable for turbines.

Planning permission would still be dependent on a project being able to demonstrate local support and satisfactorily address any impacts identified by the local community, DLUHC has said.

The government will also seek views on developing local partnerships to allow supportive communities that wish to host new onshore wind infrastructure to benefit from doing so, such as through lower energy bills.

The consultation will also address how the planning system can support communities to have a say on the necessary infrastructure to connect wind farms to the grid and encourage upgrades of existing wind farm sites.

Responding to the government’s announcement, Energy UK deputy director for investment, Adam Berman said: “We strongly welcome the government’s intention to overturn the effective ban of onshore wind in England. Onshore wind is cheap, clean, and one of the quickest generation technologies to build. The solution to an energy crisis caused by global prices out of our control is through producing more electricity on our shores.

“Onshore wind is a crucial part of that mix alongside other low carbon technologies like offshore wind, solar, and nuclear. Polls consistently show that onshore wind is hugely popular with local communities. We urge the government to build on that support, and put in place a regulatory framework that ensures onshore wind projects vital to our energy security are not held back by regressive and outdated prohibitions.  We look forward to seeing further details shortly.”

Dan McGrail, chief executive of RenewableUK, said: “Lifting the de facto ban will mean we can generate more cheap power to help hard-pressed billpayers and cut our dependence on gas. Creating a level playing-field for onshore wind will boost our energy security while ensuring there is local support for new projects, and we look forward to working with government and communities on the detail of a new approach.”

Frank Elsworth, Vattenfall’s head of UK onshore development, said the announcement sent a “very positive signal that the government is serious about harnessing the benefits which onshore development can unleash for the environment, the economy, and communities.

“Vattenfall’s experience in England, Wales and Scotland has shown that people respond positively when they see the benefits which development brings in the form of investment, jobs, and support for local businesses. There doesn’t need to be a one-size-fits-all approach to community engagement – the most successful projects are those that enable communities to help shape the way the wind farm will benefit the surrounding area.”