Ban developments on Green belt and Greenfield sites across the country

Loss of green belt & greenfield sites for housing negatively affects the environment, releasing carbon from the land & losing that land's ability to capture new carbon. Wildlife and plant life already under stress, are displaced & loss of green spaces has a negative effect on communities.

The Government currently offers strong protections for the Green Belt from development in national policy. The National Planning Policy Framework states that a Green Belt boundary may be altered only in exceptional circumstances. Any proposal is subject to consultation with local people followed by rigorous and independent examination of the area’s Local Plan by a planning inspector. If a local authority cannot avoid the loss of Green Belt, it is expected to offset the loss of that land by environmental and access improvements to land remaining Green Belt. Furthermore, national planning policy states that most new developments in the Green Belt should be refused planning permission unless in very special circumstances, rightly determined by the local authority. As a result, the Government is not considering this proposal at this time.

As set out in the landmark Levelling Up White Paper, we are committed to enhancing the quality of land designated in the Green Belt. This means increasing public access to Green Belt, while simultaneously delivering nature recovery, in line with Environment Act commitments. This will provide improved access for those communities that currently lack good quality green space.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities

This is a revised response. The Petitions Committee requested a response which more directly addressed the request of the petition. You can find the original response towards the bottom of the petition page (Ban developments on Green belt and Greenfield sites across the country)