Battery energy storage systems (BESS)
This briefing covers battery energy storage systems (BESS), concerns about their safety and barriers to their deployment.

The Government published the final version of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPFF) on 27 March 2012. It replaced almost all planning guidance immediately, although planning authorities have twelve months in which to get their plans adopted.
National Planning Policy Framework (168 KB , PDF)
• On 27 March 2012, DCLG published the final version of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPFF). It came into effect immediately, superseding the 2011 draft and all other planning guidance (except on waste).
• Local Planning Authorities have twelve months to revise their plans to take account of the NPPF.
• This note covers the presumption in favour of sustainable development. Topics such as housing, wind farms, the countryside, the green belt and so on are covered in separate notes.
• Critics, led by the National Trust and the Campaign to Protect Rural England, accused the draft document of handing over too much power to developers, reducing protection for rural England.
• However, they are more satisfied with the final version of the NPPF.
• Supporters of the NPPF welcome the radical simplification of planning guidance and argue that it contains the necessary safeguards, without restricting needed investment.
National Planning Policy Framework (168 KB , PDF)
This briefing covers battery energy storage systems (BESS), concerns about their safety and barriers to their deployment.
A briefing on the devolution plans in the government's white paper of December 2024, Power and Partnership: foundations for growth
A debate on support for rural businesses will take place in Westminster Hall on 18 June 2025 at 2:30pm. The Library will publish briefing materials ahead of the debate.