UK govt eases planning rules to speed up onshore wind projects

However, with climate concerns rising up the political agenda in Britain, polling earlier this year showed onshore wind farms were more popular with the public than among members of parliament. Ministers were placed under increasing political pressure by a move from a group of Conservative lawmakers to insert a clause into laws passing through parliament that would oblige ministers to revise the planning rules within three months.

The British government said on Tuesday it would speed up the approval process for onshore wind projects in England that are supported by local people, easing what has been viewed as an effective ban in order to boost energy security.

The government said the changes, which come into effect immediately, involved streamlining planning rules and included broadening the ways that suitable locations can be identified and accelerating the process of allocating sites. "To increase our energy security and develop a cleaner, greener economy, we are introducing new measures to allow local communities to back onshore wind power projects," Michael Gove, minister for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said.

Communities that back local wind farms could also benefit from cheaper energy under proposals to incentivise more projects, the government added. Although not formally banned, new onshore wind farms have been effectively ruled out since 2015 by planning rules which could allow a single complaint to block a project.

Onshore wind has been unpopular within the Conservative Party, which has been in power since 2010, because many of its lawmakers' rural constituents disliked turbines being built in their area. However, with climate concerns rising up the political agenda in Britain, polling earlier this year showed onshore wind farms were more popular with the public than among members of parliament.

Ministers were placed under increasing political pressure by a move from a group of Conservative lawmakers to insert a clause into laws passing through parliament that would oblige ministers to revise the planning rules within three months.