Written questions by Abrahams.

Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of enclosing motorway systems in noise barriers on the suitability of land for housebuilding.

My Department has no current plans to make such an assessment. The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that planning policies and decisions should contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment by preventing new and existing development from contributing to, being put at unacceptable risk from, or being adversely affected by, unacceptable levels of noise pollution. Planning policies and decisions should avoid noise giving rise to significant adverse impacts on health and the quality of life. It is up to individual local planning authorities to determine what contributions should be sought to assist in mitigating the impact of unacceptable development to make it acceptable in planning terms.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring developers to ensure that the area of vegetation in developments is at least equal to the area of the site of (a) greenfield, (b) brownfield and (c) open space deficiency sites.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) makes clear that planning policies should be based on robust and up-to-date assessments of the need for open space and should make sufficient provision for and maintain and enhance networks of green infrastructure, which includes areas of vegetation. Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Framework helps to define what good green infrastructure ‘looks like’ for local planners, developers, and communities. The Green Infrastructure Framework includes a standard on accessible greenspace which sets criteria on size, proximity and quality. The government is currently consulting on changes to the NPPF, including a new requirement for local plans to set out standards for green infrastructure, drawing upon Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Standards. These include a standard on accessible greenspace which sets criteria on size, proximity, and quality. The consultation can be found on gov.uk here and will remain open for responses until 10 March 2026.