Ministers have signed the instrument bringing forward staged commencement of measures in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 and the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025. It activates reforms across compulsory purchase, nationally significant infrastructure policy, development corporations, and England’s new Environmental Delivery Plan regime. The Statutory Instrument was published on Legislation.gov.uk as SI 2025/1370.
From 19 December 2025, core provisions establishing Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) and the nature restoration levy framework took effect, alongside duties tied to preparing, consulting on and monitoring plans. In statute, section 59 defines what an EDP must cover, including affected environmental features, required conservation measures and levy arrangements. Sections 60–63 set required contents; section 64(1) requires notification when an EDP is begun; section 82 covers administration and monitoring; sections 94 and 95 set general duties and a duty of co‑operation; section 97 enables regulations; section 99 provides interpretation.
Natural England confirmed on 19 December 2025 that it has decided to prepare 23 EDPs in England, comprising sixteen plans on nutrient pollution and seven for great crested newts, with nutrient plans to be consulted on first in line with the new notification duty in section 64(1).
The EDP model introduces a statutory route for developers to meet specified environmental obligations by paying a levy that funds conservation measures delivered under the plan, with the Secretary of State responsible for making EDPs and Natural England responsible for administration and monitoring. Natural England states that most EDPs are expected to be voluntary, subject to public consultation and the “overall improvement test”.
From 18 February 2026, compulsory purchase reforms in the 2023 Act commence for orders in England not handled by the Welsh Ministers. Section 183 inserts “conditional confirmation” into the Acquisition of Land Act 1981, allowing confirming authorities to confirm an order subject to conditions that must later be satisfied before powers are exercised. Section 184 applies corresponding provisions for ministerial CPOs via Schedule 19.
For acquiring authorities and scheme sponsors, conditional confirmation creates a new sequencing option: the order can be confirmed earlier in a project’s lifecycle while specified dependencies-such as funding, design or other consents-are discharged before implementation. The statutory text sets out the procedure, notices and effect once conditions are fulfilled.
Also on 18 February 2026, the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 changes to nationally significant infrastructure policy take effect. Section 1 amends the Planning Act 2008 to require full reviews leading to amendments of each National Policy Statement with a maximum five‑year interval; section 2 introduces additional parliamentary requirements for material amendments.
Section 13 of the 2025 Act reforms legal challenge routes for National Policy Statements and Development Consent Orders by removing the paper permission stage and enabling the High Court to designate “totally without merit” cases as not appealable to the Court of Appeal-intended to shorten litigation timelines while keeping an oral permission hearing.
Development corporation provisions also start on 18 February 2026. Sections 100–103 clarify remit and relationships between corporation types, standardise duties to aim to contribute to sustainable development and to climate change mitigation and adaptation, and align infrastructure powers across models, including an explicit list that covers transport, utilities, community and heat network infrastructure.
Compulsory purchase procedure is further updated. Section 106 simplifies the required description of land in newspaper notices under the Acquisition of Land Act 1981. Sections 108 and 109 amend the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981 to allow an expedited vesting timetable where land is unoccupied or owners cannot be identified, and to allow earlier vesting by agreement; the statute specifies a six‑week minimum where the expedited route is available. These provisions are commenced in England to the extent not already in force.
Transitional protections apply so that CPO processes already publicised under the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 before commencement, or compulsory acquisitions authorised before the expedited vesting provisions begin, are not affected mid‑process. The commencement instrument confirms these savings alongside the staged start dates.
A further date follows: from 1 April 2026, section 91 requires Natural England to publish an annual report to Parliament on the exercise of its Part 3 functions, including lists of EDPs in force or in preparation and a summary of levy receipts and conservation spending. This reporting duty is designed to provide visibility on EDP delivery and funding flows.
In practice, planning and infrastructure professionals should now factor three milestones into delivery timetables: immediate EDP groundwork and notifications from 19 December 2025, CPO and NSIP procedural changes effective from 18 February 2026, and EDP financial and performance reporting from 1 April 2026. Natural England has signalled that the first consultations and submissions will focus on nutrient pollution EDPs, with developers, authorities and agencies expected to engage through the statutory consultation process.