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

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the proposals in the Government consultation on Changes to the current planning system on (a) the green belt and (b) biodiversity in (i) England and (ii) Wirral.

In Planning for the Future we put forward for consultation some significant changes to the focus and the processes of planning to secure better outcomes, including improving our precious countryside and environment alongside increasing the supply of land for new, beautiful homes and sustainable places. One key proposal is that local plans would categorise all land as areas for growth, for renewal or for protection. The proposal makes clear that, under the reformed system, local authorities would use the plan-making process to ensure the continued protection and enhancement of Green Belt and biodiversity, in line with our policies in the National Planning Policy Framework. The consultation remains open until 29 October 2020. Following consideration of the consultation responses received, we will publish the Government's response in due course. This will set out any decisions and how we intend to implement them.