Closed petition Produce a Farmland Protection Policy to regulate the loss of farmland to solar

Due to the cumulative impact solar developments will have on availability of agricultural land, the Government should produce a regulatory framework in the form of a National Policy Statement on Farmland Protection to avoid losing a critical mass of productive agricultural land to solar.

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Agricultural land is a finite resource. We believe there is currently a policy conflict where Government seeks to protect and enhance our domestic production to maintain food security whilst also encouraging the growth of solar energy production. New ground-mounted solar developments must be subject to increased regulation to ensure that they do not undermine UK food security, which could result in increasing food costs.

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Large solar farms debated by MPs

On Wednesday 9 March, MPs took part in a Westminster Hall debate on large solar farms. The debate was opened by Brendan Clarke-Smith MP. During the debate, MPs discussed the impact of such farms, including the use of agricultural land for solar farms.

Watch the debate: https://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/cfb520e2-47e0-4a8b-9d6a-278ec30016c5

Read the transcript: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2022-03-09/debates/22030973000001/LargeSolarFarms

What is a Westminster Hall debate?

Westminster Hall is the second chamber of the House of Commons. Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local and national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Westminster Hall debates are general debates that do not end in a vote.

Find out more about Westminster Hall debates: https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/business/debates/westminster-hall-debates/

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MPs debate National Food Strategy and food security

MPs debated the National Food Strategy and food safety on Thursday 27 October in the main House of Commons chamber. The debate was led by Esther McVey MP and Kerry McCarthy MP.

Watch the debate

Read the transcript

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What are backbench business debates?

Backbench business debates give backbenchers (MPs who aren’t ministers or shadow ministers) an opportunity to secure a debate on a topic of their choice, either in the Chamber or Westminster Hall.

MPs can make a request for a debate to the Backbench Business Committee, who hears and decides which debates to schedule.

Backbench debates can either be general debates (which do not end in a vote) or be on a substantive motion (which calls for an action and can end in a vote). This debate was a general debate.

Large Solar Farms debated by MPs

On Tuesday 21 March, MPs took part in an adjournment debate in Parliament on large solar farms.

The debate was led by Nigel Adams MP. Amanda Solloway, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, responded for the Government.

What are Adjournment debates?

Adjournment debates are general debates which do not end in a vote. They give a backbench MP the opportunity to raise an issue and receive a response from a government minister.

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MPs debate food security and farming

On Wednesday 19 April MPs debated food security and farming. MPs discussed preventing development on agricultural land, and preventing the loss of farmland to solar farms.

This was a Westminster Hall debate, led by Wendy Morton MP.

What are Westminster Hall debates?

Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons.

Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local or national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Any MP can take part in a Westminster Hall debate.

Debates in Westminster Hall take place on ‘general debate' motions expressed in neutral terms. These motions are worded ‘That this House has considered [a specific matter]'.

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MPs debate on planning and solar farms

On Wednesday 19 July, MPs debated the matter of planning and solar farms. During the debate, MPs raised concerns about the installation of large-scale solar farms, especially on agricultural land.

The debate was led by Dr Caroline Johnson MP. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Andrew Bowie MP, responded on behalf of the Government.

What are Westminster Hall debates?

Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons.

Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local or national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Any MP can take part in a Westminster Hall debate.

Debates in Westminster Hall take place on ‘general debate' motions expressed in neutral terms. These motions are worded ‘That this House has considered [a specific matter]'.

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Sign up to the Your UK Parliament newsletter for the latest information on how to get involved and make a difference.

MPs call for food security to be designated as a public good

MPs on the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee have called for the Government to seize its opportunity to ensure deliver food security, following an inquiry into environmental change and food security.

What has the Committee said?

On 8 December, the Committee published a report on the UK's preparedness and resilience to future food supply stresses or shocks caused by climate change and biodiversity loss.

The report calls on the Government to implement the following key measures:

  • Publish the Land Use Framework no later than the 19th December 2023 and integrate food security as a central principle
  • Designate food security as a public good
  • Provide more clarity on its plans for baseline metrics in food sustainability
  • Publish a strategy for innovative food production technologies

You can read a summary of the Committee's report, and the Committee's full report on their website. You can also find out more about the Committee's work on environmental change and food security.

The Government now must respond to the committee's report within two months. The committee will publish the Government’s response on the Committee's website.

What is the Environmental Audit Committee?

The Environmental Audit Committee is a cross-party group of backbench MPs that considers the extent to which the policies and progress of government departments and non-departmental public bodies contribute to environmental protection and sustainable development and audits their performance against sustainable development and environmental protection targets.

The Environmental Audit Committee is a select committee. Find out how select committees work.

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Food security debated by MPs

On Thursday 21 March MPs debated reports on food security from three parliamentary committees. The findings and recommendations of the reports were discussed, including the impact of environmental change and insect decline on food security.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Robbie Moore MP, responded on behalf of the Government, outlining the steps that the Government is putting in place to address the issues highlighted in the reports.

The debate was scheduled by the Backbench Business Committee.

What reports were MPs discussing?

MPs were discussing three reports that parliamentary committees have published in the last year:

The committees that published these reports are cross-party groups of MPs that look into the work of the Government.

What are backbench business debates?

Backbench business debates give backbenchers (MPs who aren’t ministers or shadow ministers) an opportunity to secure a debate on a topic of their choice, either in the Chamber or Westminster Hall.

MPs can make a request for a debate to the Backbench Business Committee, which decides which debates to schedule.

Backbench debates can either be general debates (which do not end in a vote) or be on a substantive motion (which calls for an action and can end in a vote). This debate was a general debate.

Visual explainer: Backbench Business debates

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