Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he expects Natural England will give a substantive response as a statutory consultee to the planning application submitted by WHWhite Limited to Dorset Council in November 2021 for a surf lagoon on land adjacent to the Avon Heath Country Park in Dorset; and for what reason that response has been delayed.

Natural England have previously provided pre-application advice to W H White Limited on their Brocks Pine surf lagoon development proposal at Avon Heath Country Park in Dorset in December 2020 both on potential impacts on protected features, as well as suitable avoidance and mitigation measures.

Natural England are also advising the local planning authority (LPA) in their statutory duty to assess the impact of the development on internationally important wildlife both on the site (Dorset Heaths Special Area of Conservation) and on adjoining land (Avon Valley Ramsar site). Details are awaited from other parties to enable the LPA to complete this process.