On October 26th, 2023, the UK's Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 received Royal Assent and entered into law. The Act lays out provisions for the country's levelling-up and national planning missions, and provisions on reporting on the progress to delivering levelling-up and planning projects. The original bill (Bill 006 2022-23), introduced to Parliament on May 11, 2022, contained provisions on integrating climate considerations by planning authorities in the development of local plans, plans on minerals and waste, supplementary plans, and amending London's spatial development strategy to include climate considerations in the development of land in Greater London (specifically, the consideration of how the development of land will contribute to the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change).
The Bill was amended on reporting and presented to the House of Lords by the Commons on December 19, 2022, for an additional reading (HL Bill 84). The amended Bill (Bill 173) included a proposed new provision devoted to climate change duties, in provision 96 of Chapter 2) Development Plans. Provision 96 on the 'Duties in relation to the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change' stipulates that the Secretary of State must "have special regard to the mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change in preparing— (a) national policy, planning policy or advice relating to the development or use of land, (b) a national development management policy pursuant to section 38ZA of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004". Furthermore, relevant planning authorities must also hold a special regard for the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change in their planning decisions and granting of planning permissions. According to the proposed amendments to the Bill, the mitigation climate of change includes the achievement of the UK's net zero target for 2050 as well as the achievement of applicable carbon budgets made pursuant to section 4 of the Climate Change Act 2008.
However, these amendments were rejected by the House of Commons. Final amendments to the Act include duties specific to the Secretary of State, who "must have regard to the need to mitigate, and adapt to, climate change— (a) in preparing a policy which is to be designated as a national development management policy, or (b) in modifying a national development management policy.”
