Better Regulation Executive - Focus on Enforcement - Coastal Projects and Investments
The Focus on Enforcement Report found that while relationships between regulators and developers are generally positive and professional, and found examples of good practice – for example the Marine Management Organisation’s (MMO) approach to customer feedback – there were areas of concern that could hold back investment and have a negative impact on economically significant developments on the coast. Findings fell into the following broad categories:
- The relative weights given by regulators to growth and environmental concerns.
- Overlaps between regulators (businesses provided several examples where a lead regulator had been identified only after long delay, or not at all);
- Timescales: time taken in pre-application discussions (in some cases they have been very protracted indeed, causing severe issues for the prospective developer and its customers);
- The applicant’s experience of the system (small companies are often unaware of how to engage the marine licensing system: they may not even know that it exists. They found the system unduly complex for small projects adding to the time taken, the cost and the commercial risk);
- The regulators (capability, resources).
In response to the issues raised, Defra, in conjunction with DfT, MMO, the Environment Agency (EA) and Natural England (NE) have produced an action plan, which sets out, amongst other things:
- a Marine / Coastal Development Concordat, to include MMO, EA, NE and Department for Transport (DfT) and the Local Government Association to the extent possible. This will provide applicants with a single point of entry spanning all of the regulatory systems, and rapid agreement of a lead regulator
- further work to build on regulatory improvements already in train including staff training, improved guidance and a review of licence conditions across all marine sectors to ensure they are proportionate;
- new guidance on exemptions for low-risk activities, and strengthened guidance on minor activities which have never been subject to the marine licensing regime under the law but which sometimes have been thought to be subject to it.
- MMO improvements to caseload management and planning, and the Marine Delivery Group will identify new ways to work together more efficiently and provide a better service to business in marine consenting.
The press notice is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-takes-action-to-cut-red-tape-for-coastal-projects-and-investments