Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether legislative changes (a) are necessary and (b) have been made to ensure compliance in Northern Ireland with obligations under the (i) Environmental Impact Assessment Directive and (ii) Espoo Convention on Transboundary Impact.

Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (“the EIA Directive”) was amended by Directive 2014/52/EU (“the amended EIA Directive”). The amended EIA Directive has been transposed into UK domestic law through a number of legislative measures made by Parliament and the devolved legislatures, including by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The UNECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (“the Espoo Convention”) was adopted in 1991 and entered into force on 10 September 1997. It was ratified by the UK on 10 October 1997. The changes it makes to transboundary requirements are reflected in amendments made to the EIA Directive and Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment (“the SEA Directive”) and UK Regulations transposing both Directives.