A bid to relax strict planning rules around onshore wind in England is gathering political momentum in Westminster.
An amendment to the levelling up and regeneration bill, tabled this week by Conservative MP Simon Clarke, calls for reforms to National Planning Policy Framework that would make it easier for local councils to approve new projects where there is community support.
It states new legislation should “ensure that guidance permits local planning authorities to grant onshore wind applications for the purposes of installing new sites not previously used for generating wind energy” as well as repowering schemes.
The motion has been backed by several Conservative MPs, including former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.
Writing on Twitter, Clarke welcomed their support, saying his amendment was a “pro-growth, pro-green policy at a time when we need both”. He added it would allow onshore wind only in cases where there is community consent.
Truss in her short premiership attempted a similar move to relax planning rules and bring onshore wind in line with other infrastructure, but her successor Rishi Sunak has shown little sign of supporting that policy.
It follows restrictions imposed in 2015 that have effectively blocked new onshore wind development in the country.
The levelling up and regeneration bill is currently making its way through parliament ahead of a vote that is being seen as an early acid test for Sunak’s authority in parliament.