Update 20th May 2026
Dear all,
Update 20th May, 2026
East West Rail Parish council & RA’s on-line briefing with the planners tonight
20th May 18.00 – 19.00
Apologies for the lateness in sharing the link below but EW Rail have only just confirmed it is ok for us to do so.
EWR Spring 2026 Consultation: Parish Council & Residents’ Association Briefing – Wednesday 20th May (18:00 – 19:00) – VIRTUAL ONLY
This all-member briefing will be led by GCSP and supported by EWR and shall include:
- Overview of what is an NSIP and what is EWR
- Overview of the EWR consultation and our response
- Opportunity for questions (East West Rail will also be in attendance)
Microsoft Teams meeting
Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/3860608486589?p=Y9xlCSAq2PtzYI8i33
Meeting ID: 386 060 848 658 9
Passcode: Hk6J69Qh
Should you have any questions beforehand please do not hesitate to contact us via NSIPS@GreaterCambridgePlanning.org
Note : Rachel Reeves to unveil plan to curb legal challenges to ‘critical’ green energy projects –Financial Times May 20 See link below (sorry about paywall)
https://www.ft.com/content/e301a9df-2d11-49e9-9c09-ae66af1d9866?shareType=nongift
‘The Treasury said on Wednesday that the move would “help deliver the government’s commitment to accelerate new infrastructure development”
‘It said that for all other nationally significant infrastructure — including transport and water projects — the government would introduce a fixed legal challenge window, at the end of which the planning consent could be updated to address any legitimate issues’
Defra’s Habitats Regulations Assessment Consultation (link below)
https://consult.defra.gov.uk/protected-sites/8c7b61c8/
https://wcl.org.uk/docs/HRA_guidance_consultation_Link_response.pdf
FeCRA submitted a response in support of the concerns raised by the nature and animal welfare coalition Wildlife and Countryside LINK, just in time to meet the deadline which has now passed. We will post it on the website.
https://wcl.org.uk/docs/HRA_guidance_consultation_Link_response.pdf
Extract from FeCRA response to HRA Consultation:
‘We write to share the concerns expressed by The Wildlife & Countryside Link (Link) in their response to the consultation that the changes proposed will weaken wildlife protection law. Link state that ‘they have significant concerns that, as currently drafted, several sections of the guidance risk weakening the robustness of the HRA process that could undermine its core legal purpose.’
Across the guidance, they say they are concerned that ‘the language has shifted from mandatory provisions to a weaker approach. Established safeguards have been qualified or omitted, and the framing of certain provisions risks tilting the balance towards development facilitation at the expense of a rigorous precautionary approach that the Habitats Regulations requires. These are not peripheral concerns. The Habitats Regulations represent some of the strongest, most valuable existing environmental protections in domestic law, and the guidance that sits beneath them must reinforce, not dilute, those protections.’
These concerns are particularly relevant for East Anglia and for Cambridge the UK’s driest city, targeted for high growth. The Cam chalk streams and their wildlife are in dire straits, because of over-abstraction and sewage. The proposed new reservoir in Fenland will not be ready until 2035. It is not even clear yet where the water to fill the new reservoir is coming from. The new reservoir is for the development already in the Local Plan but, as highlighted by Stephen Kelly the Director of the Greater Cambridge Shared Planning Service in 2023, the Fenland reservoir will not address the higher growth for the area envisaged by the government. This growth includes data centre growth. Data centres are known to be very high consumers of water and as commercial entities they do not have to state how much water they use.’
(extract from conclusion below)
‘It is concerning that there has been no publicity about this consultation given all the recent concern in the media about UK nature loss and the findings of the report commissioned by Natural England which stated that red squirrels, a loved and protected species, are likely to be extinct in the next twenty-five years because of the loss of their habitat.’
Cam River Rights Festival
Sunday June 21st 4.30-9.30 pm Venue: Midsummer Common by the river
Friends of the Cam say: “Bring a picnic and invite your friends. This is a joyful and very popular event with some lovely music.”
Best wishes,
Wendy
Wendy Blythe
Chair, FeCRA
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