§ 43. Mr. Barry FieldTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to ensure that developers take full account of environmental considerations and consult with relevant environmental authorities before embarking on development programmes.
§ Mr. MoynihanLocal planning authorities are required to consult a wide range of bodies on planning applications and to take all material considerations into account when deciding whether to grant planning permission. These provisions have been widened and strengthened by the Town and Country Planning (Assessment of Environmental Effects) Regulations 1988 under which applicants must provide environmental statements for projects which are likely to have significant environmental effects; the Nature Conservancy Council and Countryside Commission must be consulted about all applications to which these regulations apply. While there are no statutory requirements for developers to consult public bodies with environmental responsibilities prior to submission of planning applications, developers are advised (for example in my Department's recently published booklet "Environmental Assessment—A Guide to the Procedures") to undertake such consultations so as to ensure that schemes are designed with environmental considerations in mind.