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URGENT – your help is needed to save Zero Carbon Homes Policy

Please add your name, address and email. We will then forward your response to Lancaster City Council.

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To which proposed Main Modification does your representation relate?

Description of the proposed Main Modification

Do you consider this proposed Main Modification is:

If you consider the proposed Main Modification to be unsound, please identify which test of soundness your representation relates to?

This is your opportunity to put your arguments against the Inspectors ruling. Below is a suggested response. Do feel free just to cut and paste it, it will still be effective. Or adapt and add your own arguments, as long as these relate to the above categories of Positively Prepared, Justified, Effective, and consistent with National Policy.

The National Planning Policy Framework lays out that the planning system should “shape places in ways that contribute to radical reductions in greenhouse gas emissions” (Paragraph 152) and “take a proactive approach to mitigating and adapting to climate change” (Paragraph 153).  The modification MM14 will not lead to “radical reductions in greenhouse gas emissions” and should be abandoned completely. The original proposed Policy DM30a with a requirement for net zero homes should be retained.
The original policy was positively prepared, justified, effective, and consistent with National Policy, that is the Climate Change Act (Amendment 2019) which commits the UK to go net zero by 2050, the National Planning Policy Framework, and the 2021 uplift in the Building Regulations.  These supersede the Written Ministerial Statement WMS15, which the Inspector cites as the basis for the modification MM14. Other Inspectors (Cornwall, Bath & North East Somerset and Central Lincolnshire) have ruled that local authorities can set much higher energy standards than building regulations and aim for net zero residential buildings ahead of national Government policy.<br> 
The inconsistency from the Planning Inspectorate in their decision for Lancaster also ignores recent warnings (March 2023) from the IPPC that we need to act now to reduce our carbon emissions if we are to have any chance of meeting our commitments under the Paris Agreement, which the UK Government has ratified.
In conclusion, MM14 is not justified and not consistent with current national policy as it relies on an outdated WMS that has been overtaken by other legislation. It is not positively prepared as it ignores the urgency demanded by the climate emergency (note the world has just experienced the hottest day ever recorded). It is not effective nationally, as it reflects an inconsistent approach from the Planning Inspectorate in terms of policies for energy efficiency in new homes and creates confusion for local planning authorities. It is not effective locally, as it will mean that new homes in Lancaster District will have to be retrofitted in the future to achieve net zero, which is more expensive than building to high standards in the first place. 
MM14 should therefore be dropped entirely, and the wording should return to that originally proposed by Lancaster City Council.

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