Nottingham Friends of the Earth has written to MPs in the Greater Nottingham area asking them to urge Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles to meet with the Royal Town Planning Institute and others to discuss how to stop the effects of tearing up policies to protect the environment. This follows a letter from the RTPI to Mr Pickles, supported by Friends of the Earth and other organisations.

In the name of localism, Mr Pickles has revoked all regional spatial strategies - which means tearing up policies to protect the environment across the East Midlands - without waiting for alternative local policies to be put in place. But there are many issues which require strategic planning above the local level - protecting the environment, tackling social inequalities, climate change, etc.

Particular problems have been caused to local authorities in Greater Nottingham who have been working on an Aligned Core Strategy to coordinate planning across the conurbation. Much of that work has been put on hold.

Full text of email sent to Greater Nottingham MPs:

Email sent 19/8/2010TO:  MPs in Greater Nottingham (Nottingham Core Housing Market Area)FROM: Nottingham Friends of the Earth

Strategic Planning to protect biodiversity, tackle climate change, etc

We would like to ask you to urge Eric Pickles to respond positively to an offer from the Royal Town Planning Institute and other organisations earlier this month to discuss how to incorporate strategic planning in the localisation agenda. (www.rtpi.org.uk/item/3937/23/5/3)

You will be aware that Mr Pickles has caused significant problems by revoking all policies in Regional Spatial Strategies without waiting for them to be replaced in local plans. (At least when the last government made the retrograde step of abolishing Structure Plans they allowed 3 years for them to be replaced.)

Particular problems have been caused for authorities in Greater Nottingham working on an Aligned Core Strategy which has now been put on hold (though some work on developing the evidence base is continuing). Although Mr Pickles has indicated that local authorities should cooperate in developing their local plans he has revoked the policy framework within which they were doing this. It is not clear whether the Decentralisation and Localism Bill will provide the guidance they require to resume this work.

We are also concerned at the policy vacuum which has been created in the East Midlands by revoking a number of strategic planning policies including those relating to:     

• Protection and enhancement of biodiversity, including for priority habitats.
• Protection and enhancement of the landscape.
• Protection and enhancement of woodland cover.
• Protection and enhancement of the historic environment.
• Priorities for maintaining and enhancing green infrastructure.
• Water quality and water resources (including water efficiency standards for new development).
• Protection and enhancement of key river corridors.
• Energy efficiency standards for new development and priorities for low carbon energy generation (including renewable energy targets).

(A more comprehensive list is given in papers for EM Leaders’ Board, 25 June 2010 (Item 5, p26) www.emcouncils.gov.uk/East-Midlands-Leaders-Board )

As the RTPI and other organisations including Friends of the Earth have noted, many pressing issues facing the nation require strategic planning at a level larger than the local, “such as economic recovery, meeting housing need and demand, sustainable transport, regeneration, sustainable development and growth, investment in our infrastructure, biodiversity loss, climate change, and reducing inequality.”

We hope that you will be willing to ask Mr Pickles to meet the RTPI to discuss how to ensure these issues are addressed within the localisation agenda.