Are NIMBYs blocking major infrastructure plans in the east?

Major infrastructure projects in the east of England have been delayed Protracted legal challengesAccording to the government. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to eliminate so-called NIMBI – Not in My Back Yard – challenges he says stand in the way of the country’s growth. But how disruptive have these challenges been to the East of England, and why have groups campaigned against the projects cited by the government?

On Thursday, Sir Keir announced plans to stop campaigners from repeatedly launching legal challenges against decisions on major infrastructure projects in England and Wales.

Their rationale was to prevent “cynical” and “hopeless” appeals blocking plans for things like wind farms, nuclear stations and transport projects.

As part of the announcement, Downing Street referenced improvement plans for Suffolk’s Sizewell C nuclear power station, the A47 in Norfolk and wind farm infrastructure in the area which has been hit by challenges from campaigners.

Energy company EDF wants Sizewell C to provide clean, reliable electricity for decades, but is waiting for government permission to build.

The government has previously said that new nuclear plants will be needed if Britain is to meet its target of reducing electricity generation, and some work has started On site in preparation.

In Norfolk, three major upgrades are underway to the national highway A47.

first plan started last year On the section of road between North Tuddenham and Euston, east of Norwich, which will create two extra lanes and two new junctions by 2027.

ultimately lionlink And sea ​​link Offshore wind projects in Suffolk have led to converter stations being built in several locations in the county.

Like Sizewell’s situation, National Grid is awaiting permission but has spoken about the importance of the wider project.

Several groups have taken action against Sizewell C on a number of issues.

Recently, Theberton and Eastbridge Action Group on Sizewell Ltd. lost a high court Made a bid to challenge the Office of Nuclear Regulation’s decision to issue a license for the site.

In December 2023, The Court of Appeal rejected a legal challenge Together Against Sizewell argued that the government failed to consider the need for a water supply at the site.

The A47 improvement plans were previously thrown into doubt when a former Green Party councilor attempted to block them.

Andrew Boswell claimed that the Department for Transport’s development consent orders, approved in 2022, failed in each case to assess the significance of cumulative greenhouse gas emissions as required by law.

However, he lost his case in the High Court and then challenged rejected in appeal court,

In May, the Supreme Court rejected his application to hear the legal challenge.

The National Highways said the cost has increased due to delays in the three schemes due to the impact of inflation.

Offshore4Sure has Campaigned against construction of substations In Suffolk.

It wants developers to find more suitable sites, but National Grid said this would delay green energy and greater energy security.

It said there were “no suitable brownfield sites in eastern Suffolk” for substations.

Campaign group Stop Sizewell C has been vocal against the nuclear power station for many years.

Alison Downes, executive director of the group, said on Thursday that the Prime Minister’s comments showed that people were “always winning legal challenges” – which was “far from the case”.

He felt that the decision could “destroy the right” of people to protect their habitat.

“Sometimes (legal challenges) are the only means of addressing fundamental flaws in a project that are not addressed by developers or ministers,” he said.

“The people most affected by a project are those who actually take the time and trouble to read the details and understand where all the difficulties lie which often ministers and developers will try to ignore, and which have potentially very serious consequences. May give problems are down the line.”

during the trip to Port of Lowestoft ThursdayEnergy Security Secretary Ed Miliband told the BBC it was “absolutely right” to have a judicial review of what the government is doing for local people.

However, he said there is often an “endless cycle of one case after another” on the same issue.

“I think we have to make a different choice as a country, which is to listen to local people (and) make sure that local communities get direct benefits if they host clean energy infrastructure, But we also have to build that infrastructure which is in the interest of the country,” he said.

The government said it planned to use the upcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill in March to bring about legislative changes to “take action forward at a strategic level” while providing certainty for developers and the environment.

It also promised to take 150 major infrastructure project decisions by the next elections.