Apply or modify the Habitats Regulations to reduce costs whilst protecting the environment
Amend Habitats Regulations
Apply or modify the 2017 Habitats Regulations to:
- Remove the need to prove a negative when drawing a conclusion on impacts, so that the wording of the regulation refers to the need for scientific evidence and excludes merely hypothetical or speculative risks.
- Define 'compensatory measures' to expressly exclude the need for like-for-like compensation and instead accept that overall enhancement and measures to support the coherence of protected sites is sufficient.
- Establish that de minimis effects do not constitute an adverse effect on integrity, including where they have a de minimis contribution to in-combination effects with other projects.
- Legislate to remove the requirement for separate HRA assessments to be completed for each regulator at different stages, unless there has been a material change to a project. This could be achieved by "deeming" that the first assessment meets the tests of any subsequent approval unless there is a fundamental change in circumstances.
- Modify the 2017 Habitats Regulations, to allow mitigation measures to be considered at Stage 1 of the Habitats Regulations assessment process.
Government Response: Habitats Regulations — mostly guidance, limited legislation
The Government is taking forward this recommendation through a combination of legislative and non-legislative measures, but is only legislating for one element: allowing mitigation to be considered at an earlier stage of the HRA process. The remaining four changes recommended by the Taskforce (removing need to prove a negative, redefining compensatory measures, establishing de minimis thresholds, and preventing duplicative HRA assessments) will be addressed through guidance only. The critical question is whether this guidance will have statutory underpinning — without it, the changes are vulnerable to legal challenge under retained EU law, which was a key reason the Taskforce recommended legislative reform in the first place.
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Key Regulators
Taskforce target: December 2027
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