By GB News (World News) | Created at 2026-10-11 23:00:50 | Updated at 2026-10-12 02:36:04
3 hours ago
Natural England must undergo radical reform to stop it obstructing housebuilding and alienating farmers, the chairman of an influential Commons committee has warned.
Alistair Carmichael accused the Government's environmental watchdog of being too dogmatic, standing in the way of economic growth and ignoring rural communities.
The embattled green watchdog already faces abolition under new Conservative plans. Now, the chairman of an influential Commons committee is demanding radical reform, warning the organisation has become dogmatic and unaccountable.
The row follows controversies over costly wildlife protection measures, including a £95million structure to protect bats from HS2 trains and an underwater "fish disco" - an acoustic fish deterrent - at Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.
Last week Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch vowed to scrap Natural England as a separate body, transferring its functions to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
"When we are in charge, no-one from Natural England will turn up with a clipboard to count all the bats and newts," Mrs Badenoch told the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham.
Now Alistair Carmichael, chairman of the powerful Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, is demanding sweeping changes to the watchdog.
"Natural England needs radical reform. Agencies like this should not work without accountability," he told GB News.
An artist's impression image issued by HS2 of the Sheephouse Wood bat protection structure 
"The culture of Natural England is obstructive to development as well. They can be very dogmatic and it's not healthy."
He warned its approach was at odds with ministers' ambitions to boost housebuilding and economic growth.
"This is a time when the Government says it is supposed to be on a mission for growth," he said.
Mr Carmichael also accused the organisation of failing to listen to farmers who have spent generations managing the countryside.
"The farmers might not have the degrees, the masters, the PhDs and the rest," he said. "But they know about the countryside.
"So many people tell me they feel unheard by Natural England; they feel ignored when they raise concerns and they are required to do things that don't make sense to them."
His intervention comes as Natural England undergoes a change of leadership.
Career civil servant Neil Hornby has taken over as chief executive following the retirement of Marian Spain. Chairman Tony Juniper, a former Friends of the Earth director, reaches the end of his current term in April 2027.
"The new team coming in at the top must reset the way Natural England engages with the rural community," Mr Carmichael said.
One of the biggest controversies involves environmental rules blamed for holding up thousands of new homes.
Under so-called "nutrient neutrality" rules, developers in affected areas must prove new housing will not increase pollution in protected rivers and waterways.
They can do this by buying credits to fund wetlands or changes to farming practices that offset pollution from sewage.
But developers complain the system adds thousands of pounds to housing costs and delays construction.
Natural England itself sells nutrient credits, prompting accusations of a conflict of interest because it advises on the environmental requirements while also offering developers a way to meet them.
Its Government-funded scheme was launched in 2022 with an ambition to help unlock 40,000 homes.
But figures reported in December 2025 showed £28million had been spent while certificates had been issued for just 2,999 homes - fewer than one in 13 of the original target.
Henri Willmott, who leads environmental projects at Biocore Agri, a British organic fertiliser manufacturer, accused Natural England of marking its own homework.
His company is challenging the watchdog over plans to let farmers earn pollution-offset credits by switching from chemical fertilisers rather than taking land out of production.
He said: "You wouldn't let the Financial Conduct Authority run a hedge fund or the Civil Aviation Authority run an airline so why is an environmental regulator participating commercially in the nature markets it oversees?"
Biocore Agri claims Natural England initially accepted its proposed scheme before reversing its position over how pollution savings would be calculated.
"They create the problem and they sell the solution," Mr Willmott said.
"Natural England are acting as judge, jury and executioner.
"They decide who can enter the market, set market standards whilst milking their own rules as a revenue stream. That is the conflict of interest."
The Government has already moved to reduce planning bureaucracy.
On October 1, ministers announced reforms after Government figures suggested nearly a third of the 22,500 planning consultations referred to Natural England annually were unnecessary.
The watchdog has also come under fire over expensive measures to protect wildlife on major infrastructure projects.
At Hinkley Point C nuclear power station, developer EDF says it is spending more than £700million on three fish protection systems.
These include an underwater "fish disco" using sound to scare fish away from the plant's cooling-water pipes.
On high-speed train development, HS2, Natural England gave advice and licensed a £95million structure near Sheephouse Wood in Buckinghamshire to protect rare Bechstein's bats from passing trains.
Farmers have also clashed with the organisation over restrictions on grazing and controlled heather burning.
On Dartmoor, Natural England advice to reduce grazing sparked fears of a mass cull of the moor's famous ponies. Ministers intervened after protests and ruled that ponies would no longer count towards grazing limits in new environmental agreements.
And in the north of England, Moorland managers are warning restrictions on heather burning are increasing wildfire risks by allowing dry vegetation to accumulate. Mr Carmichael said increasingly restrictive rules on rural land could also threaten Britain's food security.
"Natural England needs to have a sense of stewardship that farmers do, which runs deep into the farming psyche," he said.
"Food security is national security and we need to do more to protect and grow food and too often Natural England is standing in the way of this."
Natural England maintains protecting wildlife, supporting farming and enabling development should go hand in hand. It says its statutory duties require it to safeguard vulnerable habitats while helping developers and land managers find practical solutions.
