Planning Permission: Biodiversity
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department's joint guidance entitled Biodiversity net gain, updated on 31 July 2026, what assessment she has made of the potent impact of changes to evidential requirements for claiming the de minimis exemption on the number and type of applications that will be eligible for the exemption.
Answered by Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
As set out previously in Government consultation responses, any changes to the de minimis exemption for biodiversity net gain will be considered in the round and alongside other BNG reforms. The new 0.2-hectare exemption which came into force on 6 August 2026 is expected to significantly reduce the number of developments claiming the de minimis exemption. Planning Portal data for August 2026 shows that use of the de minimis exemption more than halved, from 81% in July 2026 to 37% in August 2026 following the introduction of the 0.2-hectare exemption. The Government expect similar trends going forward. Prior to 6 August, roughly 80% of planning applications have been exempt from BNG, with around 80% of those exempt claiming the de minimis exemption
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