Protected areas and species

Brexit impact

11 pm (GMT) on 31 December 2020 marks the end of the Brexit transition/implementation period entered into following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. At this point in time (referred to in UK law as ‘IP completion day’), key transitional arrangements come to an end and significant changes begin to take effect across the UK’s legal regime. Any changes relevant to this content will be set out below.

For further guidance, see Practice Note: Brexit—impact on environmental law and News Analysis: Brexit Bulletin—key updates, research tips and resources.

Protected Areas

Designated areas

Many areas with distinctive plants, animals, habitats, geology or landforms are protected at the international, European, national and local level. Some habitats have been identified as needing priority conservation action.

Site protection by designation is for the preservation and protection of valued species and habitats.

Sites can be designated under EU or national law and designation can be cumulative. EU designated sites are Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and form part of the Natura 2000 network. Sites which are protected at an international level include Ramsar

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Latest Planning News

Planning weekly highlights—4 September 2025

This week’s edition of Planning weekly highlights includes: court decisions in relation to a a compulsory purchase order and a council’s failure to have regard to material considerations in determining a planning application; a design quality amendment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill; a consultation to streamline the planning process for national significant infrastructure projects; the Welsh Government’s consultation on proposed changes to the Building Regulations; and an integrated impact assessment for the Infrastructure (Wales) Act 2024.

Viability in planning—back in the spotlight

Planning analysis: A sequence of recent decisions have highlighted the current thinking around viability, and these are a timely reminder to practitioners of the vital importance of viability in the planning process. Matthew Tucker of Burges Salmon considers the matter.

High Court challenge to a Compulsory Purchase Order (Saravanamuthu v Secretary of State for Communities, Housing and Local Government)

Planning analysis: The claimant challenged the validity of the London Borough of Newham (James Riley Point) Compulsory Purchase Order 2023, inter alia, on the basis of the rationality and lawfulness of the inspector’s approach to assessing the financial viability of the scheme. When an acquiring authority seeks to use powers under section 226 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA 1990) for a compulsory purchase order, government guidance is that the decision-maker will need to consider ’the potential financial viability of the scheme’. The case explores how that element of the guidance applies to authority-led schemes, in particular, where the scheme is regarded by the council as a ’loss leader’ (essentially to encourage wider regeneration in the locality), as here. Written by Mark Westmoreland Smith, King’s Counsel at Francis Taylor Building.

MHCLG launches consultation on measures to streamline infrastructure planning process

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched a consultation on proposed changes to guidance, public sector services and secondary legislation aimed at streamlining the infrastructure planning process for nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIPs). Key proposals include: (1) new guidance on consultation and engagement following the removal of statutory pre-application consultation requirements under the Planning and Infrastructure Bill; (2) guidance to support the acceptance stage of applications; (3) guidance for public bodies on their role during examinations; (4) regulatory changes related to the examination of applications, including compulsory acquisition; (5) reforms and improvements to pre-application services provided by the Planning Inspectorate and the fast-track process; and (6) measures to support pre-application services through effective resourcing of statutory bodies, among other proposals. The consultation also seeks views on removing statutory pre-application requirements for onshore wind projects under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA 1990) guidance.