Scottish Government consults on waiving planning permission for commercial rooftop solar
The Scottish Government has launched a consultation on permitted development rights – a waiving of planning permission if certain requirements are fulfilled – for commercial non-domestic rooftop solar. The Solar Trade Association Scotland has welcomed this consultation, after the issue was raised at all levels of the Scottish Government as a barrier to more solar […]
Blow to UK wind energy industry
The 18 June 2015 marked a gloomy day for the wind energy industry as the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) confirmed that the Renewables Obligation (RO) will close from 1 April 2016 – a year earlier than previously planned. The RO has been the fiscal driver for commercial scale onshore wind development for […]
Government plans for rural economic growth undermined by planning U-turn
The CLA today (11 July) welcomed the decision to abolish the London Borough of Islington’s Article 4 Direction – preventing the conversion of offices into homes – which contradicted Government plans to liberalise the planning rules. The organisation urged the Government to replicate this decision when considering an Article 4 Direction imposed by the Yorkshire […]
New planning guidance should help rural communities remain viable
The CLA yesterday (10 March) said the release of the new National Planning Practice Guidance (NPPG) should support the sustainability of rural communities. The organisation said the NPPG will allow more housing to be built in rural areas resulting in the viable use of local facilities such as schools, shops, and pubs. CLA President Henry […]
MP Zahawi ‘barking up the wrong tree’
CLA President Henry Robinson said Mr Zahawi, MP for Stratford-upon-Avon, was “barking up the wrong tree” to suggest the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) will harm the English countryside and backfire on the Government. Mr Robinson said: “I am afraid to say Mr Zahawi is misguided. In many areas, the NPPF is currently the only […]
Farmers could be empowered to make decisions about future barn conversions
The NFU described the proposals, which could see farmers able to make their own assessment of how farm buildings should be used, as ‘radical’. “These exciting proposals are about putting trust in farmers to do the right thing with their buildings”, said NFU chief rural affairs adviser David Collier. “They will allow farmers to make […]
Permitted development rights
The detailed regulations are yet to be published but agricultural buildings up to a specific size could be converted to business uses such as shops, restaurants, small hotels, leisure facilities and offices. It is to be noted the list of uses excludes residential use. However, the Government has also announced they will allow change of […]
