Minister for Energy (): Today, I am laying before
Parliament the draft revised energy National Policy Statements.
The energy National Policy Statements (NPSs) were first
designated in 2011. They set out the Government's policy for the
delivery of energy infrastructure and provide the legal framework
for planning decisions in key energy policy areas: fossil fuels
(EN-2); renewables (EN-3); gas supply and gas and oil pipelines
(EN-4); electricity networks (EN-5); and nuclear (EN-6). They
each sit below an overarching energy National Policy Statements
(EN-1), which sets out the need for new energy infrastructure.
The Chancellor announced a review of the current suite of NPSs in
July 2024 to provide clarity for industry and stakeholders on the
Government's clean energy superpower mission.
We have reviewed all the NPSsand determined that the existing
EN-1, EN-3 and EN-5 documents should be amended to reflect the
policies set out in the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan and support
the investment required to build the infrastructure needed for to
achieve Clean Power by 2030 and accelerate to net zero.
A new nuclear National Policy Statement (EN-7) is in development,
with anticipated designation in 2025. Once EN-7 is designated,
EN-6 will be reviewed separately. It therefore falls outside of
the review of the current suite of NPSs.
On 24 April 2025, I launched a public consultation on the draft
revised NPSs, supporting habitats, sustainability reports and
associated appendices. These are subject to a five-week public
consultation and are all available on gov.uk. The public
consultation will close on 29 May 2025.
The relevant period for parliamentary scrutiny will be from 22
May to 22 July 2025. After the relevant period has elapsed, the
NPSs will be laid in Parliament in their final form for approval
by resolution by the House of Commons, or by deemed consent by
the House of Commons following a 21-sitting-day ‘consideration
period'.
