HBF highlights BNG asks at Planning Conference

The Home Builders Federation has made seven asks of government on biodiversity net gain (BNG) as highlighted at its Planning Conference, including ensuring the system fully works.

Speaking at the event in Birmingham, Rachel Danemann, HBF’s planning manager – local plans, said HBF wished to stress to ministers that BNG, which became a legal requirement earlier this year, "costs time, money and land. The government thinks it’s all fine because nothing’s gone wrong yet”.

The nature of planning meant that problems with the new environmental regulation would not be immediately apparent, she said. Under the Environment Act, all sites are subject to a 10% uplift in BNG.

In one of HBF’s asks, the industry wants the government to get the system “working” before progressing any further. And Danemann said statutory credit systems should be fully functioning. This, HBF stated, would give confidence to those relying on them to deliver BNG.

Danemann also said the government should require local plans to include a baseline BNG assessment as part of the site allocation process. It should also make clear in local plans that “you can deliver BNG in the green belt [if off site] and in green wedges”.

HBF …