Dr Will Jones: New Homes Must be Bird-Friendly Despite Reeves War on “Green Tape”

New homes will have to include special bricks for endangered birds such as swifts under Labour’s new planning rules, despite Rachel Reeves’s war on “green tape”. The Telegraph has the story.

In a shake-up of England’s planning rules, Labour will insist that new builds are fitted with nature-friendly features such as swift bricks, hollow nesting boxes for the bird species that fit into walls.

The Chancellor has railed against “green tape” holding back the economy, saying that businesses should be able to “focus on getting things built and stop worrying about the bats and the newts”.

Earlier this year, she complained that “absolutely insane” environmental regulation had become a “barrier” to investment, pointing to the £100 million spent on a ‘bat tunnel’ as part of HS2.

However, the Government has now announced that it will introduce rules, designed to protect endangered species, for new builds.

The measures are included in its proposed overhaul of England’s national planning policy framework (NPPF), hailed as the “biggest rewrite” of the planning rulebook in a decade.

Labour said the reforms would help to hit its target of building 1.5 million new homes by the end of this Parliament.

Among the “key revisions” listed on Tuesday was the statement: “New builds to include nature-friendly features, such as installing swift bricks to support wildlife – adding little to building costs whilst delivering a win-win for nature and housebuilding.”

Swifts nest in nooks and crannies in Britain’s buildings. Once a common sight in English skies, their numbers are now declining, placing them on the UK’s red list for birds.

A lack of nesting sites is thought to be one reason behind a falling population, as well as reduced food supplies because of a drop in the number of insects available to eat.

It is understood the bricks will be treated as a requirement for new homes, with developers expected to include them unless there are compelling technical reasons preventing their use or making them ineffective.

Worth reading in full.

Dr. Will Jones is Editor of the Daily Sceptic. He has a PhD in political philosophy, an MA in ethics, a BSc in mathematics and a diploma in theology. This article was first published HERE