NIA’s Response to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s ‘National Planning Policy Framework’

New nuclear is vital for achieving Net Zero by 2050 with energy security and strong economic growth. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), nuclear has the lowest land use, lowest ecosystem impact and the lowest lifecycle carbon of all generating technologies at 5.1-6,4g CO2/kWh. It also provides geographically concentrated, predictable baseload power while creating well-paying, high-skilled jobs for communities that need them the most.

In the 2025 Nuclear Regulatory Review, the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce found that disproportionate, excessive, and inconsistent regulatory and planning processes have made nuclear deployment slower and more expensive. To help streamline the planning process for nuclear projects, we urge MHCLG to adopt in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) recommendations 24 and 37 put forward in the Nuclear Regulatory Review.

Please click here to view our response.

Further Information

The NIA is the trade association and representative body for the civil nuclear industry in the UK. We represent more than 320 companies operating across all aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle, including the current and prospective operators of nuclear power stations, international designers, and vendors of nuclear power stations, and those engaged in decommissioning, waste management and nuclear liabilities management. Members also include nuclear equipment suppliers, engineering and construction firms, nuclear research organisations, and legal, financial and consultancy companies.

The NIA is happy to provide more context, or any clarifications desired on the content of our response and to ask our members where appropriate for additional information that may be useful.

Please contact Elisabeth Roden, Policy Analyst for the Nuclear Industry Association, at [email protected] to do this.