Kit Malthouse concerned about planning bill's impact

Kit Malthouse has said the bill is a 'serious threat' to Hampshire's chalk streams, which are some of the most endangered habitats in the world.

The Conservative MP spoke after attending a Parliamentary event hosted by the Wildlife Trust.

Mr Malthouse said: "The bill is being rushed through under the guise of speeding up development, but in reality, it strips away hard-won environmental safeguards and allows damaging projects to go ahead with minimal scrutiny.

Kit Malthouse Kit with Lorna Selby of Hampshire and Isle of White Wildlife Trust and Rose O’Neill. (Image: Kit Malthouse) "It particularly puts our rare and precious local chalk streams under threat.

"Rather than making developers follow current environmental obligations to protect our habitats, it allows them to begin work immediately if they pay into a so-called 'nature restoration' fund.

"The problem with this is that the funding does not have to be spent in the same area, meaning our local chalk streams could be destroyed without any restoration at all.

"An amendment to strengthen protections for chalk streams was tabled, but regrettably, Labour MPs sitting on the bill’s committee blocked it.

"You can’t build thriving communities by rushing through developments and concreting over the wildlife they need.

"This government need to remember their many promises on protecting the environment.

"They need to rethink the bill and make sure our chalk streams and natural world receive the strongest protections.”