Tessa Vincent

Sep 1, 2023 | lesteraldridge.com | Matt Gilks |Tessa Vincent |Lesley Fereti |Tom Etherton

The Government is set to scrap “legacy EU laws on nutrient neutrality” that are “blocking the delivery of new homes”. In the latest statement by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove has pledged to further amend the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill (”LURB”) to “do away with this red tape and allow for the delivery of more than 100,000 new homes desperately needed by local communities”.

Aug 8, 2023 | lesteraldridge.com | Matt Gilks |Tessa Vincent |Bethan Dodd |Allison Fuller

For some time now, land managers have been encouraged to kick start a private market to sell “off-site” biodiversity units in advance of mandatory biodiversity net gain (BNG) for planning applications. The Government proposes to implement a mandatory 10% BNG for most major planning applications by November 2023. You can catch up with the proposals and the background by reading DEFRA’s Land Blog: “BNG: what’s happened and what’s coming next”.

Aug 8, 2023 | lesteraldridge.com | Matt Gilks |Tessa Vincent |Bethan Dodd |Allison Fuller

Leading South Coast law firm Lester Aldridge has been announced as a finalist for Legal Advisor of the Year at the HealthInvestor Seniors Housing Awards 2023. Organised by HealthInvestor magazine, the Seniors Housing Awards recognises the best talent across the retirement living sector, with strong competition in every category. An independent judging panel assesses entries in five distinct categories – development, services, finance and operations, innovation and advisory.

Aug 8, 2023 | lesteraldridge.com | Matt Gilks |Tessa Vincent |Bethan Dodd |Allison Fuller

The Government has published a price list for statutory BNG credits. It’s not commercially attractive at all, which is precisely the point. The biodiversity net gain (BNG) policy is intended as a way to contribute to the recovery of nature while developing land; to make sure the habitat for wildlife is in a better state than it was before development. The concept was brought into law by the Environmental Act 2021 and will be implemented through changes to the planning system.

Aug 7, 2023 | lesteraldridge.com | Matt Gilks |Tessa Vincent |Bethan Dodd |Allison Fuller

In June 2023, the Government’s Technical Consultation on the Infrastructure Levy closed. Among the controversial proposals, the Government suggested that the levy:would be charged on the value per square metre of the development at completion by reference to an uplift in gross development valuewould be paid by a three-step process for paymentwould result in the retention of section 106 planning obligations for many developments, albeit renamed “delivery agreements”.