Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Heaton-Harris and Kris Hopkins

Monday 25th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Kris Hopkins]

Regulations laid before the House this morning demand that developers have conversations with communities before applications are made. That is important, but having a strong local plan is also helpful.

[Chris Heaton-Harris (Daventry) (Con)]

There is best practice throughout Europe in this regard. The Danes, for instance, have an exclusion zone for dwellings that measures 10 times the radius of the blades. Surely there is some way of introducing localism-related legislation to deal with the position here.

[Kris Hopkins]

As I said a moment ago to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Steve McCabe), it is important to have a local plan. Determining where renewable energy supply facilities are to be established will give some protection to communities.