Member

There is also the question of when multiple EDPs, each at a different stage of stage of development, will apply to a proposal. We heard earlier this week that a single planning proposal could be subject to a layering of EDPs. The clock—or should I say planning blight?—will start ticking the moment Natural England postulates the proposal, but there may be serial clocks running at the same time. This is particularly benighting for small builders, which is why I heartily endorse Amendment 275A in the name of my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe. We were told last week that developers will have a choice, that there will be no compulsion to purchase an EDP and that they may purchase other private options. That has been reiterated today in the letter from the Ministers. They make the point that it will be voluntary to buy an EDP from the state—unless it is compulsory, in which case there will be no choice. There are powers in the Bill to force a developer to use an EDP in certain circumstances, no matter how expensive it is, no matter how far away it is, and however long it takes to produce. There will be a choice for these small developers: it is Hobson’s choice, and that is no good. I am concerned for what is becoming a dynamic and well-developed private industry that is innovating and being creative in the provision of mitigations.