Stop cash for trash housebuilding in the Norfolk Broads, Labour MP urges watchdog

Plan sets a national precedent

The Norfolk Broads is being used for the first Environmental Delivery Plan, or EDP. The area is a protected biodiversity hotspot, home to more than a quarter of the UK’s rarest plants and animals.

The plan would allow 15,780 homes. Developers would pay £2,675 for each house, raising £42m in total, in exchange for permission to build in the Broads. The first EDP is expected to serve as a model for others.

Hinchliff asks watchdog to act

Chris Hinchliff, the Labour MP for North East Hertfordshire, has called on the Office for Environmental Protection to intervene and stop approval of the plan. He says it breaches requirements in the government’s Planning and Infrastructure Act, is not grounded in the best available science and fails to address pollution.

In a letter to OEP chief executive Natalie Prosser, Hinchliff warned that shortcomings in the first plan could be repeated in later EDPs if the watchdog does not act. He also said Natural England’s plan omitted steps to reduce nutrient pollution, including septic tank upgrades, small treatment plants for homes outside mains sewers and riverside buffer strips.

Campaigners warn of pollution

Broadcaster Chris Packham is backing WildFish’s campaign against the Norfolk EDP. He warned that environmental protections built over decades could be undone, while pollution in the Broads continues to worsen.

Matthew Browne, head of public affairs at the Wildlife Trusts, said even small increases in pollution could push the rivers beyond a tipping point, with serious consequences for the Broads. The government said it welcomed views on its proposals and encouraged stakeholders to contribute expertise to the new approach to nature restoration.

Nature pressures frame debate

Sewage, agricultural runoff and chemicals have also contributed to pollution in rivers. Hinchliff said the EDP leaves most pollution unaddressed and would lock in degraded ecological conditions.