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National Planning Policy Framework
16 July 2026
Lead MP
Tessa Munt
Wells
Lib Dem
Responding Minister
Matthew Pennycook
Tags
HousingParliamentary ProcedureEnvironment
Word Count: 12881
Other Contributors: 13
At a Glance
Tessa Munt raised concerns about national planning policy framework in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.
Key Requests to Government:
I ask the Minister to reconsider the changes to the National Planning Policy Framework that prioritise building homes over protection from flooding. I also request a letter explaining how the Government has arrived at population growth figures for Somerset and North Somerset, which seem unrealistic compared to national projections.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Lead Contributor
I am concerned about the High Court decision permitting the development of 190 homes in Yatton, a flood-prone area. This sets a precedent for other communities living with flood risks. The village is barely 2 km from the Bristol channel and within flood zone 3a, according to the Environment Agency. Fifty-one percent of my constituency is less than 20 metres above sea level, making it highly susceptible to flooding. Building on such land undermines property values, causes significant damage to homes and businesses, and affects mental health. The Flood Re scheme ends in 2039, leaving properties built in high-risk areas uninsurable or unmortgageable.
Alex Brewer
Lib Dem
Hart
Alex Brewer supported the need for building homes but criticised the Government's failure to introduce targets for council and social housing. He highlighted that under previous Conservative Administrations, Hart district and Basingstoke councils failed to produce local plans, leading to speculative development on the edges of towns and villages without accompanying infrastructure. He noted how these areas are now easy targets for inappropriate developments due to new Government housing targets, with developers land-banking to protect profits. Brewer also raised concerns about water supply issues in North East Hampshire, citing a lack of statutory consultee powers and environmental impacts.
Andrew George
Lib Dem
St Ives
The MP congratulated his colleague on securing the debate and highlighted the inequity of national targets imposed through the National Planning Policy Framework. He noted that the framework has weakened the rural exception policy, which was productive in delivering affordable homes in rural areas like Cornwall. The MP argued that local authorities can no longer designate rural exception sites due to the new framework, leading to conversion to open-market housing developments and a lack of means to deliver affordable housing. The Minister says that the purpose of the policy is to drive the need for affordable homes. However, in rural areas, this is driving affordable homes off rural exception sites and making them unaffordable. The setting of targets means local plans are no longer viable.
Brian Mathew
Labour Co-operative
Melksham
Stressed the importance of local people and elected officials playing a role in deciding their area's future due to their understanding of it. Highlighted successful examples like Holt village's neighbourhood plan and Seend's community land trust delivering affordable homes.
He criticised the national planning policy framework as broken and beyond reform due to decades of deregulation, leading to speculative development and ignoring local democratic processes. He called for a new system that puts power in the hands of communities.
Claire Young
Con
Thornbury and Stapleton
The MP is concerned about the threat to green belt land protection under the Government's grey belt policy. She noted that South Gloucestershire council has a local plan delivering homes while protecting remaining countryside, but the new framework undermines this deal by parceling up green belt land for individual assessment, leading to cumulative degradation of the overall green belt. The MP argued that the changes would lead to delays in housing delivery and urged the Minister to revisit the NPPF.
Damian Hinds
Con
East Hampshire
Welcomed the move towards stronger wording in the NPPF regarding intentional unauthorised development but argued it does not go far enough. Highlighted concerns over increased housing targets for rural areas, exacerbated by water supply issues and local government reorganisation plans.
Gareth Bacon
Lab/Co-op
Bromley
The NPPF changes have led to urban sprawl, releasing green-belt land for development and disproportionately increasing housing targets in rural areas. The CPRE research shows that 88% of homes on grey-belt sites are built on previously undeveloped countryside. There is enough brownfield land to build 1.41 million homes without encroaching on the green belt.
Gideon Amos
Lib Dem
Taunton Deane
Amos raised concerns about the National Planning Policy Framework, arguing that it centralises power away from local communities and undermines infrastructure investment. He cited specific examples such as the Orchard Portman development near Taunton where 1,100 acres of farmland were sold without community approval. Amos also pointed out that the framework proposes a de facto presumption in favour of development, which could undermine local plan preparation efforts. Additionally, he mentioned the impact on green belt areas and highlighted issues with proposed changes regarding biodiversity net gain and energy targets.
Jim Shannon
DUP
Strangford
Jim Shannon commended the hon. Lady for her ambition but raised concerns about a risk of severe regulatory divergence if the English planning system undergoes massive deregulation and introduces a faster, rules-based approach to major projects.
John Hayes
Con
South Holland and The Deepings
John Hayes endorsed the hon. Lady's comments on keeping land habitable, highlighting that South Holland and The Deepings are entirely flat with drained and reclaimed land from the sea. He stated that attempts to put critical infrastructure such as solar panels and pylons on this land are incompatible due to its propensity to flood.
Hayes and Harlington
He expressed concern about the introduction of the concept of the grey belt, which developers use to despoil green belt areas and then apply for planning permission for development. This undermines efforts to protect the green belt.
John Milne
Con
Horsham
John Milne highlighted the challenges Horsham faces with water neutrality and criticised the national house building strategy for focusing excessively on planning permission while ignoring other obstacles. He argued that local authorities' negotiating power is undermined by high housing targets set through the standard method, leading to developers prioritising profit over affordable homes and social infrastructure. He noted a paradox of chronic housing shortages alongside 1.5 million unbuilt houses with planning permission, blaming this on a lack of local democracy in approving deficient sites without proper transport or water supply provision.
Olly Glover
Con
Norwich North
The new draft NPPF has been welcomed by district councils for its structure, usability and the aim of a streamlined planning system. However, concerns remain about moving away from local decision making and community empowerment due to reduced input of elected councillors in planning decisions. The environment is also a concern with insufficient focus on climate and environmental obligations.
Government Response
Matthew Pennycook
Government Response
I congratulate the hon. Member for Wells and Mendip Hills on securing this important debate, and I thank the Backbench Business Committee for granting it. The national planning policy framework sets out the Government's planning policies for England and how they should be applied. It aims to achieve sustainable development by providing a framework within which locally prepared plans can provide for homes, commercial development and supporting infrastructure in a sustainable manner. Since taking office, we have consulted on changes to the framework, finalising them in December 2024, including restoration of mandatory housing targets, support for social and affordable housing provision, strengthening policy relating to brownfield land development, modernised strategic approach to green-belt land designation and release, and support for key economic sectors and clean energy infrastructure. In December 2025, we published a fuller overhaul of the NPPF for consultation, representing the most significant reform since its introduction more than a decade ago. We have received over 20,000 responses to the consultation and are analysing them. However, due to the Prime Minister's resignation announcement on 22 June, it has not been possible to respond to the consultation and publish the final framework before the summer recess. The NPPF outlines a sequential approach to flood risk management, requiring inappropriate development to be directed away from areas at highest risk and providing strong safeguards where necessary. We have received over 20,000 responses to the consultation on the new NPPF, but due to Government constraints during the summer recess period, we will seek to respond and publish it in due course.
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About Westminster Hall Debates
Westminster Hall debates are a chance for MPs to raise important issues affecting their constituents and get a response from a government minister. Unlike Prime Minister's Questions, these debates are more in-depth and collaborative. The MP who secured the debate speaks first, other MPs can contribute, and a minister responds with the government's position.