Twenty-eighth Report Adapting Institutions to Climate Change Cm ...

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Anyone wishing to develop land has to apply for planning permission (unless permitted
development rights apply). One of the most important functions of a development plan is to
inform the planning authority’s decisions on such applications. Planning decisions have to be
in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. The
need for adaptation to climate change is surely a material consideration.
There are a number of statutory obligations on plan-makers in respect of climate change
adaptation. So regional spatial planning in England must include “policies designed to secure
that the development and use of land in the region contribute to the mitigation of, and adaptation
to, climate change”; 24 the regional strategies proposed in the Local Democracy, Economic
Development and Construction Act 2009 also demand policies “designed to contribute to the
mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change”. 25 Local development plan documents in
England and Wales similarly must “include policies designed to secure that the development and
use of land in the local planning authority’s area contribute to the mitigation of, and adaptation
to, climate change”. 26
Scotland does not have England’s explicit statutory duties in respect of planning in particular,
although the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 imposes a duty on all public bodies (including
planning bodies) in the exercise of their functions to act in the way best calculated to help deliver
the Scottish programme for adaptation to climate change. 27
Planning authorities are further guided by national planning policy, issued by the Department for
Communities and Local Government (CLG), the Scottish Government and the Welsh Assembly
Government. Scotland and Wales each have national plans with supplementary technical
guidance; in England there is a series of Planning Policy Statements (PPSs) and guidance
documents. Relevant government policy is a material consideration in all decisions taken within
the planning regime and, although this does not necessarily mean that policy will be followed in
all cases, any departure must be justified. Specific guidance on climate change for England can
be found in CLG’s supplementary PPS on planning and climate change issued in 2007, which
includes adaptation alongside mitigation. 28 We would expect adaptation to feature more strongly
in the recast PPS on climate change to be issued later in 2010. The Scottish National Planning
Framework requires development plans to include policies designed to “contribute to” adaptation.
For Wales, the Welsh Assembly Government has published Technical Advice Notes (TANs) on
development and flood risk, 29 and on design, 30 which are relevant. Northern Ireland as yet has no
comprehensive spatial guidance on adaptation.
The second National Planning Framework (NPF2) is Scotland’s strategy for the long-term
development of its towns, cities and countryside. 31 NPF2 guides the spatial development of
Scotland to 2030. It addresses critical elements of national infrastructure: transport, energy, waste
management, water and drainage, flooding and water resource management, and communications
technology. NPF2 specifically endorses the creation of national ecological networks to create
better environments and new opportunities for local communities. In doing so, it supports both
the delivery of greater resilience to a changing climate and sustainable economic growth. NPF2
must be taken into account by local authorities in the preparation of statutory strategic and local
development plans, thereby promoting climate change adaptation into the land use planning
system and investment decisions. In addition, the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 placed
a requirement on Scottish Ministers to lay before the Scottish Parliament a land use strategy by
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Chapter 3