Modernising and simplifying the processes behind developing infrastructure projects in Wales is at the heart of a new bill laid today (Monday, 12 June 2023).
Climate Change Minister Julie James described the new Infrastructure (Wales) Bill as an ‘important step’ towards delivering on renewable energy targets as Wales moves towards net zero by 2050.
The proposals in the Bill support multiple commitments in the Welsh Government’s Programme for Government including ‘building a stronger greener economy’ and ‘embedding the response to the climate and nature emergency in everything we do’.
The Bill has been developed with several key aims in mind:
- It will ensure a streamlined and unified process that will help developers access a ‘one-stop-shop’ for permissions, consents, licences and other requirements currently issued under different consenting regimes.
- It will also offer a transparent, thorough and consistent process, which will allow local communities to better understand and effectively engage in decisions which affect them.
- It will see new consenting processes able to meet future challenges in a timely manner by being sufficiently flexible to capture new and developing technologies, as well as any further consenting powers which may be devolved to Wales.