This consultation seeks views on changes which the UK government is proposing to make to the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.
The consultation runs from 8 April until 3 June 2025.
The changes are aimed at making the permitting regime more agile in managing environmental risk and providing greater business certainty and transparency. Defra aims to simplify and speed up the process for the lead regulators (the Environment Agency in England and Natural Resources Wales in Wales) to create, amend and remove types of exempt facilities and activities which are not required to hold an environmental permit.
It will mean that legislation won鈥檛 be needed to make changes 鈥� instead the EA and NRW will be able to move activities in and out of exemptions themselves after undertaking public consultations.
皇家华人is reviewing the proposals in detail and will be submitting a response. We are keen to hear from members across all sectors to ensure farmers鈥� views are reflected.
Why this matters to farmers
Exemptions are commonly used in farming to enable low-risk waste and water-related activities without needing a full permit, provided certain conditions are met.
Changes to how exemptions are created, modified or removed could introduce new requirements in the future. For example, registration, reporting or compliance checks, depending on how the powers are used.
It鈥檚 important that any future changes remain workable for farmers, and do not introduce unnecessary complexity or cost for routine, low-risk activities.
What happens next?
The consultation closes on 3 June 2025.
皇家华人will submit a full response and continue engaging with Defra, the Environment Agency and other key stakeholders throughout the process.
