Countryside and Farms: Solar Power
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make it his policy to prioritise industrial rooftops over (a) arable farmland and (b) countryside fields for solar panel locations.
Answered by Michael Shanks
The Government incentivises industrial rooftop solar in various ways, including permitted development rights, favourable tax treatment, and the Smart Export Guarantee.
Solar is part of our strategy for improving the energy performance of buildings. It will play an important role, where appropriate, on newbuild non-domestic buildings in the Future Buildings Standard which is to be introduced later this year. The UK’s overall approach to Net Zero commercial buildings will be set out in the Warm Homes Plan later this year.
Achieving our ambitious clean power mission will require rapid deployment of rooftop and ground-mounted solar. However, planning guidance makes clear that, wherever possible, solar developers should utilise brownfield, industrial, contaminated, or previously developed land.
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