In response to the consultation earlier this year, Mattew Pennycook’s statement yesterday was not wholly unexpected or unwelcome. Changes to Biodiversity Net gain rules will now exclude developments under 0.2ha of land, in a drive to make it easier to build homes on smaller sites. It is a lower threshold than the previously rumoured 0.5ha and will ease the burden for small builders and off-site providers alike over fiddling with very small divisions of units, though resulting in an overall loss in biodiversity it is a smaller loss than that feared with the 0.5ha threshold.

Intentions to introduce measures to simplify the delivery of BNG offsite, particularly for medium-sized developments could be a welcome step - so long as the operation safeguards biodiversity and there in so further creep in lessening habitat.

There remains the concern over potentially expanding exemptions on brownfield sites of up to 2.5ha in size, to make it easier, quicker, and cheaper to deliver off-site nature improvements. An exemption such as this, could significantly undermine BNG principles.

Next, we can expect the measures around Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), which is due to go live in May 2026.