R23: Proportionality in decommissioning permitting

DEFRA to amend the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 (EPRs) to create an exemption for stockpiling materials on an existing nuclear site subject to generic conditions. This should be agreed between the NDA, and the Secretary of State. This system should be in place by end of December 2026.
DESNZ legislates for “constrained discretion” in the context of decommissioning activities (covering the EPRs, CDM and other legislation). Should there be a circumstance in which an activity concerns multiple regulators, a single lead regulator should be designated to make a decision. Using their constrained discretion, a lead regulator should be able to grant approvals where inconsistencies across regulations apply, taking into account overarching outcomes.
Nuclear Reactors (Environmental Impact Assessment for Decommissioning) Regulations be amended to avoid the need for duplicative assessments. Government must legislate to ensure there is no more than one Environmental Impact Assessment. In tandem, the Government should seek an amendment to the Aarhus Convention to ensure that there can be no finding against the UK in respect of this change.
Going forward, there should only be a requirement to comply with guidance that existed at the outset of an assessment unless otherwise exceptionally specified. More specifically, the EA should not require the application of an updated GRA for LLWRs in relation to the ESC prepared for the GRA and that a proportionate and enabling approach is taken to reviewing updates to the ESC.
MHCLG should amend the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 to include Permitted Development Rights which are granted to the NDA. These rights should be equivalent to powers granted to statutory undertakers.

Create proportionality in permitting for decommissioning activities