New amendments to the Government's Planning Bill have been laid in Parliament to strengthen the scrutiny of national policy statements by the House of Lords, and tackle climate change.

The changes provide a key new role for peers in scrutinising all national policy statements including those for aviation, nuclear power and renewable energy, and there is now a legal duty on the face of the Bill for National Policy Statements to show how they will mitigate and adapt to climate change.

• There will be an explicit climate change duty on the face of the Bill. National Policy Statements and regional plans will now have to show how they mitigate and adapt to climate change - and Government must explain how it does this to parliament.
• A Lords Committee will now have a key role reviewing and scrutinising National Policy Statements, increasing Parliamentary scrutiny of draft statements by both Housest.
• Confirmation of inquiry procedures, will ensure that the Infrastructure Planning Commission can where appropriate invite cross-examination of witnesses to help with evidence gathering whilst still ensuring that local voices are not drowned out by powerful lawyers.

Communities Secretary, Hazel Blears said:

"With climate change now firmly implanted in this bill it really will deliver, in a more democratic system, the low carbon economy we need to move to. We have improved the Bill at each stage and listened to constructive ideas from MPs and Peers.

Without the Bill the Government contend that a bureaucratic and slow planning system will continue to stall many vital infrastructure projects.

Planning Bill Minister, John Healey commented:

"In the tough climate we face the economic case for this Bill is stronger than ever before. We simply can't create a modern and greener economy using a post war planning system.

"The planning bill is the key to unlocking the modern green economy and subsequent new jobs and that is why business backs it. “